I'm on Your Team
by EveroneIsRight
Summary: She soon learned that no one trusted Spies, even the other Spies. She didn't blame them. Her class was about nothing but mystery and deceit. No, the worst part of it all was being female. TF2. Fem-Spy OC. T for language & references. Please rate & review.
1. Don't trust the Spies

_Hello! This is my first story, first time posting, no beta and all that newbie jazz. I've had this for a while, but haven't posted this because I've been absolutely terrified of invading the land of the 'TF2 Female OC'. Now I just figured what the heck, I might as well post it and get some feedback. This was originally a one-shot, but I feel like I would want to continue it. Feedback is appreciated._

_So if you detest Team Fortress 2, females or original characters, I suggest you click the back button and read something else. If you can brave all that, please read on and enjoy!_

_(Rated T for language and sexual references.) _

_**Disclaimer**: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

The RED Spy strode toward the mess hall. Staring around the empty hallway, thinking of the little time spent in the more public areas of the base. A sigh.

'_Only here a month. At least I haven't gotten lost yet.'_ Oh well. There were more pressing matters at hand. The latest intelligence, for example.

She had work to do.

No one looked around as the female Spy entered the crowded mess hall. She was used to it now. She had learned early on that no one trusted Spies, even the other Spies. She didn't blame them. Her class was about nothing but mystery and deceit. No, the worst part of it all was being female.

She wasn't the only Female Class, or Fem-Class, as they were called. The understanding was that around a month ago one of the RED Scouts reported seeing a female Medic trailing one of the BLU Heavies. More out of spite then anything RED had requested female compatriots and the higher ups had surprisingly complied. There were a grand total of three females on RED at the moment, all on a four month contract.

First the Spy, fresh out of her training with minimal field experience.

Next was the Fem-Scout, heeding from New York. She was as much of a boy as the rest of the Scouts, which was probably for the best. She would run into battle screaming curses and waving her bat with a little too much enthusiasm. You wouldn't be able to tell she was a girl unless you looked hard enough.

Lastly was the Fem-Demo. After meeting her on the train ride to the base Fem-Spy didn't know how she would be received. She was very much black and Scottish, with a giddy attitude and hair draped over her right eye. She said it was because she had been blind in that eye since birth.

"And it sure ain't a pretty sight to look at!" She had laughed. Fem-Spy didn't question it.

As it turned out the men loved the female arrivals. Fem-Scout was taunted mercilessly by the boys, but was always ready to beat the crap out of anyone who went too far. This earned the respect of the other Scouts quickly, especially the one who made a crack about her father. He was later seen dashing to the infirmary, clutching a broken nose. Fem-Demo proved on the first night that she could drink as much as anyone, except maybe the Heavies. She quickly fell into the routine of drinking and laughing with the others in the mess hall and watching her new brothers' backs on the battlefield.

That left Fem-Spy. She was coldly accepted into the ring of the RED Spies and never shown any extra compassion or kindness. She didn't want it anyway. She was an outcast by class and gender and didn't expect any less. Getting to this position by herself, as a woman, taught her the harsh reality of the sexist workforce.

She sat down by herself at a table in the corner of the hall with a cup of herbal tea and the latest stolen Intel. She brought the tea to her lips and inhaled the sweet aroma. She took a sip, and was rudely interrupted.

"Wazzup Spy girl?" It was Fem-Scout. Fem-Spy nearly choked on her steaming beverage.

"'Allo Scout," She said, wiping her lips, "How are you doing zis evening?" She kept her tone even. She hated people interrupting her tea time.

"Nothin' much. Jus' wanted to see how you were holdin' up is all." Fem-Scout scratched her head. She wasn't an ugly girl, but not beautiful either. Her close cut red hair danced above her eyebrows playfully. Her pants (which were more shorts really) were covered in dirt and what looked like this nights dinner.

"'Ow I was 'olding up? I am fine _mon ami_, you should worry about yourself." Said Fem-Spy, glancing meaningfully toward the table where the majority of the rambunctious Scouts sat.

"Aw they're not half bad! You just need to be like them, ya know? Get inside their minds." Fem-Scout giggled manically.

As a Spy, getting inside someone's mind was easy. Fem-Spy sometimes wondered if the Scouts even had anything in their heads.

"Anyway, just checkin' to make sure you weren't thinkin' about quittin' or anything. Then it'd jus' be me an' Demo, and she's as nuts as any of these other guys." Fem-Scout waved a goodbye and dashed out into the hallway.

Fem-Spy sighed as she watched the girl leave. Her tea was cooling now and she wanted to drink it before anyone else interrupted her. She pored over the documents for the next few hours. New weapons upgrades, heavy artillery, vehicles, someplace called the 'Aperture Science Enrichment Center'. . . This was what Fem-Spy lived for. She loved dissecting information and infiltrating secrets. It was what she had focused on throughout her training.

Not to say she wasn't a fighter. Oh no, Fem-Spy could fight if she had to. She did have to, as she found out during her hellish training experience. The final assignment was a practical application of all the knowledge the Spy recruits had learned, including killing methods. Needless to say not everyone passed. She got by, but didn't want to say she enjoyed it. She just preferred not to think about it.

After many hours, the mess hall was clear and the lights were dim. Fem-Spy was the only one left in the room. She yawned and began to pack up. It would be a long day of fighting tomorrow, and she wanted to be well rested.

She packed the last of the papers into her folder when she heard a sound. Not a familiar sound in an empty mess hall, however. The click of a lighter. She adjusted her posture and turned around. Standing there was another RED Spy, taking a drag on a freshly lit cigarette. This Spy was the veteran in the group. In other words, he had stayed alive the longest.

"_Bonjou_r Spy. Fancy meeting you 'ere." She tried to keep her voice steady. The truth was this Spy made her nervous. His icy glare seemed to penetrate into her mind, demanding she share whatever secrets she had with the world.

"Shouldn't you be getting to bed?" He said. There was no emotion in his voice.

"I was on my way." Fem-Spy stated as she began to stride past him. He grabbed her arm. She resisted the automatic impulse to pull out her revolver.

"What are zhose?" The Spy asked, motioning toward the folder.

"Zhose are the documents you obtained today, _Monseiur_." Fem-Spy stood tall and did her best to meet his gaze. "Now, eef you would be so kind, I must go. Eet iz getting late." She tore her arm away from him. The area he had grabbed felt sore.

"Pardon_, Mademoiselle_. One can never be too careful zhese days." He let out a puff on his cig and turned to walk away. "And considering your position I would be very, _very_ careful."

Fem-Spy watched the enigma of a man leave the room. She stood still for an entire minute before silently cursing herself and making her way toward her bedroom.

As if she was going to get any sleep now.

* * *

_There's the chapter. Like I said this was originally meant to be a one-shot, but I would like to possibly continue it. _

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments are loved! :3_


	2. Meeting Rooms

_I'm back! Another chapter is here, now with gratuitous amounts of detail! (Kidding)_

_Thank you to the people who commented on my last chapter. Please continue to do so!_

_Sg-pix: Thank you! I wanted to make Fem-Spy a more level headed character. She's more of a normal person because she hasn't been driven mad by war, at least not yet._

_general-tommy: You bring up excellent points. As with being a one-shot, this also used to be a 'you are Fem-Spy' type writing (second person). When I went back and re-wrote it, I guess I skimped out on physical descriptions and environments. Thank you for your comments and feel free to give any other criticism you think will be useful. Also, I play Sniper, Medic and Pyro. I suck at Spy, but love the character._

_Without further ado, I hope you enjoy the next chapter!_

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page. _

* * *

'_The girl in the mirror is tired. She is nervous. She is me.'_

Fem-Spy broke out a cigarette and turned away from the looking glass. She took a few long drags and peered back at her reflection. She looked terrible. Her run-in with the Spy in the mess hall has put her on edge all night. She felt paranoid that someone was watching her, even though she clearly knew there was no one else in her room. She chewed on her lip.

There was a battle today. The RED team was stationed at Double Cross for a little intelligence stealing. It was one of her favourite places for these missions. The towering RED and BLU buildings were on opposite sides of a vast gorge, with nothing but a few bridges connecting them. Fem-Spy loved this map because of its challenges. Sneaking in without being detected was difficult, seemingly impossible. It was her job to make it possible. Hopefully she would get in the action this time, instead of just defending from any BLU stragglers that made it as far as the main Intel room. Maybe she would get some respect from her fellow Spies if she could just-

There was a knock at her door.

"_Oui_, who is eet?" She called.

"Spy? Jus' seein' if yoor up." Fem-Demo answered.

"One moment," Fem-Spy pulled her hair into a tight bun at the nape of her neck. She yanked on her mask and buttoned her jacket over her crisp white shirt, careful to leave the top few buttons undone. It could get un-Godly hot running around in a suit. She grabbed her pin-striped trousers (she still didn't believe this was practical gears for killing your enemies) and hopped into them as she made her way to the door. She opened it to see the smiling Fem-Demo.

"Good tae see ya lassie!" Said Fem-Demo, slapping her on the back. "Aye, we've goot a fight today. Let's make it a bloody good one." Fem-Spy gave her a small smile and the pair made their way to the mess hall.

Maybe today would be alright after all.

The noise in the mess hall was at an unbearable level and rising.

Everyone seemed to be excited for today's fight. There was no special reason to be. It was a standard 'capture the flag' (or rather capture the Intel) mission, no extra rewards or challenges. Even so, the whole RED team seemed to be enthralled. The Demos were already drinking heavily and the Pyros were cavorting around with what looked like a spring in their step. Pyros never sprung.

Even some of the Spies had broken away from their singular icy table to join the other classes. Fem-Spy could see the Spy from last night quietly conversing with a Sniper. She looked away.

"Over here ladies!" Fem-Spy swivelled to see an Engineer waving to the two women standing in the doors of the hall. Fem-Spy recognized the Engie. The Texan had been one of those who had immediately introduced himself to the Female members of RED. She remembered the warm welcome he had given them.

They made their way toward the table the Engie was currently occupying.

There were four people on the bench at the table. The Engineer, a Demo (who was drinking), a Pyro and a Scout. Fem-Demo sat next to the Engie. Fem-Spy positioned herself awkwardly between the Pyro and the Demo.

"Emmmfggh nrt mffff?" Said the Pryo turning toward her. The mask was expressionless, but the tone in the muffled voice sounded concerned.

"I am just thinking about today, zat iz all." Fem-Spy looked to see where Fem-Scout was. She hadn't seen her on the way to the mess hall.

"Are ya worried?" Asked Engie, adjusting his hardhat.

"_Non_, I am just wondering why everyone one iz zo excited." Fem-Spy shifted in her seat.

Engie laughed. "Ah, dunno. It's jus' been quiet for the last few days; maybe we're all a bit riled up." Fem-Spy mouth twitched into a smile. She couldn't argue with that.

At that moment the doors of the mess hall swung open and Fem-Scout strode in. She spotted the others and made her way over. She flopped into the seat next to the other Scout.

"Damn! Everyone's goin' frikin' crazy!" A grin split across her face. "Whad'ya think? I'm pumped!"

"Hey, shut it, candy lips." Said the other Scout, twirling his bat. "There's only room for one Scout on dis map."

"Ooh, sorry. Is the baby in a bad mood?" Fem-Scout batted her eyelashes playfully.

"Why ya little-" The two began throwing punches. Fem-Spy looked to the other side of the room.

Why couldn't she be like that? Open and friendly with her class mates. Even as the two Scouts wrestled on the floor, you could see the affection in their blows, like only close friends and siblings have. Maybe she shouldn't have been a Spy.

The alarm rang. It was a pre-meeting alarm. The mission debriefing would begin in twenty minutes. This was meant to give the classes time to suit up and get mentally prepared. Everyone began heading to their rooms. The Scouts had broken up their fighting and were making their way to the door, arms around each other's shoulders and discussing something to do with baseball. Fem-Demo was helping the other Demo at their table, (who had been uncharacteristically quiet because he had passed out drunk) get to the door. The Engie gave Fem-Spy a nod and Pyro gave her a wave, then they began to head out as well.

Fem-Spy whipped out a cigarette and headed toward the RED's 'intelligence collection room'. It was where the Spies held their pre-battle meetings, discussing what to make of the previously stolen Intel and its relevance. She rubbed her nose. Hopefully, this wouldn't end in disaster.

* * *

Fem-Spy pushed open the door to greet a room full of stares.

'_I bet they don't stare like that when anyone else walks in.' _She thought. She took her place in a chair at the long pine table in the center of the room. Aside from the table, the walls of the room were lined with filing cabinets stuffed with papers. Several larger documents, such as maps and charts were tacked onto any free wall space. Three ceiling lamps bathed the room in a dull yellow glow.

As Fem-Spy sat down, one of the Spies at the head of the table stood up.

"Gentlemen," He addressed the whole room. ". . . And lady." He glanced at Fem-Spy and she nodded pointedly to his face. It was that Spy again. "I assume you 'ave reviewed ze documents we acquired in zee last raid. I believe ze BLU team 'as been upgrading zheir weapons significantly. It would stand to reason, zince our team has been severely out-gunned in recent battles." He paused to take a breath and inhale some more cigarette fumes. That was the one thing about Spies. They all smoked. No exceptions.

"Is there anyway me could make last minute adjustments to our weapons?" A Spy with a British accent spoke up.

"I don't think so." Another Spy, smoking multiple cigarettes at once commented. "We spent so much time decoding the files; our team will have to stay on the defensive for today. Afterword we can inform our Engineers about the proper adjustment that need to be made."

"Iz zhere really nothing we can do?" Asked Fem-Spy. She felt all eyes in the room turn toward her.

'_For Christ's sake.' _She thought. When anyone else made a suggestion, there were just some nods or subtle noises of approval or disapproval. When the woman made a comment however, it was front page news. She hated it.

"Do you 'ave any suggestions?" asked the Spy at the front of the room. He slowly made his way around the table until he stood perpendicular with her seat. Everyone was watching. "Maybe, zince you are so fresh out of training, you 'ave some 'by-zee-book' ideas for us." His expression was impassive.

Fem-Spy felt a crimson flush spread under her mask. She could hear the blatant mockery in his voice. She held her head high.

"I simply wonder eef zhere is another alternative to telling our teammates to turn tail and run from zee enemies attack." The multi-cig Spy nodded slowly. Fuelled on by this sight encouragement, she continued. "If zee BLU team's weapons are so powerful, maybe we could use that to our advantage. Set up a trap, perhaps, and catch them in zhere own friendly fire."

There were a few more nods to this, but the head Spy's expression did not change. Instead he slowly walked toward Fem-Spy, stopping right before her chair. She felt empowered. This meeting had gone the way she wanted. She and her ideas had been taken seriously by these men. Feeling daring, she threw him a cool smile.

"Unless, of course, you 'ave thought of somezhing better?"

The Spy leaned over her. She cringed away slightly, thinking he was going to strike her. He was just leaning to drop his cigarette but into the ashtray on the table in front of her. He turned on his heel and walked back to the front of the room.

"So eet is decided. We will present zhis information to ze others at zee formal meeting. _Au revoir._"

The Spies stood up and began to clear out. Some stayed to chat with each other, while others disposed of their cigarettes and simply left.

Fem-Spy waited until all the others had cleared out before she approached the head Spy. He was examining some important looking papers tacked on to one of the walls. He turned his head as she got closer.

"Ah, _Mademoiselle_. Good to zee you are making useful suggestions now." Fem-Spy didn't know whether to take that as a compliment or an insult. Instead she got straight to the point.

"Why do you dislike me?" She asked calmly. Spy raised an eyebrow.

"I do not dislike you, _Mademoiselle_. I just have trouble putting faith in those less capable then myself."

Fem-Spy was shocked by the apparent honesty of the statement. She tried to keep her voice calm and even.

"Why? Is eet because I am a woman? Because I know for a fact I've 'ad more training zhen some of zee men in zhis. . . group." For some reason she couldn't bring herself to say team. That's not what it was.

"Oh, well zhen, it's because you're a women." Spy said nonchalantly. He drew out a cigarette and lit it with a flourish. "Really, women are terrible work partners. So very nervous and flustered and zhey can't do anyzhing under pressure." Fem-Spy glared at him. Where was he getting off saying that? The pure fact that she was here proved that she was not like other women.

"You-" She began angrily.

Suddenly Spy dove toward her, his butterfly knife out and ready. Fem-Spy dodged, bewildered. As Spy spun around to take another swing at her, Fem-Spy blocked hard with her arm and aimed a kick at his stomach. He jumped back as she drew out her revolver. Now it was gun versus knife.

Spy smiled, relaxing his stance. He folded up his butterfly knife and adjusted his suit.

"Well _Mademoiselle_, eet zeems you can work under pressure." His voice sounded smug. Fem-Spy still had her gun pointed at him. "And you do not trust easily, anozther good quality."

He straightened his tie and started to leave. At the door frame he turned back.

"Eef you want me to change my opinion, prove me wrong." Then he was gone.

Fem-Spy withdrew her gun breathing heavily. She straightened her jacket and looked around self consciously. Were all her interactions with the Spy going to be like this?

* * *

_Okay, before anyone says anything, Spy will NOT be dramatically exiting rooms any more. I did it twice, but I think it fits. He seems like the type of guy who likes to put on a show._

_Hope you enjoyed it. Don't hesitate to comment or email with tips, criticisms or even plot suggestions. I'm open to anything._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make my day a bit happier!_


	3. Bridges are Dangerous

_I apologize for the short chapter. Y'know, life getting in the way and what-not. I'll update again sooner._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page. _

* * *

Three dead already. It had been five minutes and three of her teammates were dead.

Fem-Spy peered out over the crate she had been hiding behind, revolver at the ready. A spray of gunfire forced her back down. She waited until it ceased. Taking a chance, she cloaked and dashed out from behind the crate. No shots were present, though Fem-Spy could hear the yells and screams of teammates and enemies alike across the long bridge leading to BLU's Intel room.

That was her job right now, stealing Intel. Though Double Cross usually interested her, she felt uncomfortable among the fake factory and barn that held its facade for the teams fighting. Normally she might duck down to the lower train bridge and find one of the many secret tunnels or such for a sneaky entrance. Today however, the open bridge spanning the supposedly bottomless chasm seemed to call to her.

She crossed the main bridge and ducked into the courtyard. The BLU team was defending their Intel with gusto, leaving no gaps. An Engineer was laughing as his sentries shot at any approaching RED's. The Medics on both teams were working over time.

Fem-Spy took a deep breath. She saw the familiar effect of a sapper appear on the BLU Engineer's sentries. She needed no other invitation. As the man began to bang on his shooting machines, she slipped inside the Intel room.

It was surprisingly empty. There was an uptight looking Demo standing in front of the briefcase. She was about to slip behind him and stab him when she noticed something. Sticky bombs. The floor was covered with them.

'_Damn it,_' she thought, '_Time for a new plan._'

She quickly backtracked to the door, keeping out of sight from the others brawling in the courtyard. She slipped into a Scout disguise (male, of course) and dashed into the room yelling loudly.

"HEY MAN, you gotta get the fuck out there- !" She yelled, as the Scout. She slammed to a stop right in front of the Demo.

Her outburst had the desired effect. The Demo panicked and set off all of the bombs in the room, at once. After several loud explosions, the smoke cleared and Fem-Spy addressed her target.

"You frickin' serious?" She yelled, "Our asses are bein' blown to bits out there, and you're ready to kill your own teammate? Frickin' unbelievable." She bent down and dusted off her legs, waiting for a reply.

"Yeh, I-I'm a wee bit wound up today." Sputtered the Demo.

"Yeah, yeah, just get your ass outside." Fem-Spy pointed with her bat. The Demo gave a shaky nod and started for the door. Why the BLU's felt him as defence, she would never know.

Fem-Spy carefully uncloaked and advanced on the receding Demo. The stab was quick, clean and killed the man instantly.

"Ka-Boom' to _you_, sir!" She muttered, smiling to herself. She stared at the blood on her knife for a second. Only a second. She cleaned it with a handkerchief and turned toward the blue briefcase.

There was work to be done.

"**ALERT! THE ENEMY HAS TAKEN OUR INTELLIGENCE!" **

God, she hated that voice.

After taking the briefcase, Fem-Spy made a quick dash out of the building. She stopped to rest behind a small lookout tower. She grimaced and glanced down and her legs. Her right thigh had been grazed by a bullet, friendly or aggressive, she didn't know. She was losing blood. It didn't matter now. She was almost home free, she just had to cross the bridge and the Intel would be safe.

She took a step toward the bridge when the ground in front of her was peppered with bullets. She jumped back and in doing so, put all her weight on her right leg, the already weak muscle collapsing under her weight. Her face twisted in pain. Damn fine time for this to happen! She drew out her revolver. She would have to shoot her way across. She probably wouldn't make it.

Suddenly a figure formed in front of her. It was the Spy.

"Do you require assistance,_ Mademoiselle_?" He bent down and offered his hand. She couldn't tell if the look in his eyes was sincere or mocking. Instead, she shoved the briefcase into his hands.

"You must go!" Fem-Spy lowered her gun. "I cannot run. You must take zee Intel to zee base."

Spy paused for a moment, looking at her.

"Go!" She insisted. Spy straightened up and slung the briefcase onto his back.

"I will send someone for you." He said, his face straight and serious. Fem-Spy nodded.

As Spy cloaked and raced across the bridge, Fem-Spy whirled around the lookout and fired several shots into the fray on the other side of the chasm.

Once she had spent almost all her bullets, she leaned back against the rickety building she had been hiding behind and breathed heavily. She had three bullets left. Now she had to wait until someone found her.

She hoped that someone wouldn't be BLU.

* * *

_Aren't cliffhangers awesome?_

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments give me the will to get out of bed in the morning (and that IS saying something)._


	4. Appreciate Your Snipers

_Yeah, y'know how I said I'd update sooner? It's coming along. ^.^; _

_Evallin: Thank you very much. ^.^ If Fem-Spy is becoming believable, then I'm succeding in what I set out to do! There maybe a romance (or not) as well, so be prepared._

_Zanna-chan: That would be terrible! I wonder if she did? See below. . ._

_Alright, on to the chapter! Please enjoy!_

_  
__Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

He said he would come back for her. Well, no he said he'd send someone to get her. Fem-Spy waited anxiously, revolver ready. Her face felt hot under her balaclava. She waited.

Two minutes passed. Then two minutes became five and five became ten. Had something happened? They she wasn't that far from the base. Had Spy been caught_ after_ he crossed the bridge? She hadn't heard the any announcements about the intelligence being dropped, returned to the BLU based or successfully captured. Still, ten minutes was a lot of time.

Fem-Spy considered drawing out a cigarette. She reluctantly cast down the though. She was in the middle of enemy territory, she needed to stay focused.

There was a crunching of footsteps from behind her hiding spot.

Fem-Spy cocked her head. Was it a teammate, or an enemy? She carefully pulled herself into a standing position, shaking. With her gun at the ready, she glanced past her hiding spot. And almost got her face broken in by a bat.

It was a BLU Scout.

'_Just what I need.'_ Though Fem-Spy. She lurched backward and fired at the Scout. Missed. The Scout hopped over her and sprinted to a group of nearby crates for cover. She aimed at his back and fired. Missed again. Fem-Spy took a deep breath. She glanced at her gun. One bullet left. She still had her knife but dearly hoped the Scout wouldn't get in range for her to use it.

There was a _whoosh_ of movement and the Scout was running toward her. Fem-Spy took careful aim. The gun jammed. Caught off guard, Fem-Spy stumbled back. The Scout didn't move to crush her skull however. Instead he grabbed her wrists and thrust her against the wooden lookout she had been hiding behind. She dropped her gun. Her head hit the wooden paneling hard. Dazed for a moment, she blinked at her captor.

"So," Said the BLU Scout, "You're one of 'em RED ladies," He looked her up and down.

"What do you want with me?" Fem-Spy asked, feigning naivety. "You 'ave women on your team as well, _non_?"

BLU Scout snorted, "Those chicks are crazy. You girls look good, though," He licked his lips, "I bet ya don't even scream."

Fem-Spy shuddered slightly. She needed a plan to get out of this. Thinking quickly, she went with the 'seductive' approach.

"Oh, _Monsieur,_ you 'ave no idea what eet is like." She said sensually, turning her head away. She forced blood into her cheeks, "But eet 'as been so long I..." God, she felt disgusting doing this. She looked back at the BLU Scout. He was leering at her.

"Well babe, come with me an' maybe we can work somethin' out." He let go of her right hand to touch her neck. More of a grab then a touch, really. She knew how these Scouts were, all young, frivolous and horny. She leaned her face closer to his, her eyelashes fluttering.

"Oh _Monsieur_," Fem-Spy breathed. Her right hand was groping for her gun. As their lips met, her hand closed around the cold, familiar handle.

In one quick motion she ripped her body from him and pressed the gun to the BLU Scout's heart. She pulled the trigger. He moved.

She didn't miss him. The bullet found its way into the BLU Scout's left shoulder. There was an explosion of blood and bone, spraying messily onto the ground. For a moment the Scout didn't say anything. He didn't even cry out. He released Fem-Spy's other wrist and backed away.

Then his face twisted. "YOU BITCH!" He yelled, "YOU FUCKING BITCH! I'LL KILL YOU!" He raised his bat with his uninjured hand. Fem-Spy brought up her arms in protection, knowing there was little she could do. The bat however, didn't strike her arms or upper torso at all. The BLU Scout turned, a malicious glint in his eye, and brought the bat down hard on Fem-Spy's left kneecap.

The pain was like a live fuse inside her body. In a split second it travelled up her leg, past her heart and into her brain where it exploded in a marvellous display. Everything else was blocked out by the intense pain. Her mouth opened, but she restrained a scream. It was replaced with a harsh gasp and a choked sob. People said getting hit the kneecaps was torture. They had no idea.

Now she truly couldn't escape. The Scout straddled her, the blood from his shoulder wound oozing across his shirt. He yanked open her jacket, the buttons flying to the ground.

"This," He whispered into her ear, "is why ya don't fuck with Scouts," Closing her eyes Fem-Spy raised her arms, still numb with pain, in a feeble attempt to stop him. Then he collapsed on her.

Fem-Spy opened one eye. Had he passed out? The wound she inflicted wouldn't have bled out that fast. She sat up, pushing the BLU Scout off her. She glanced over him and found what she was looking for. A bullet hole in the side of his head. She turned shakily to the direction the shot had come from. Squinting, she saw a red shirt in one of the windows of her base. A Sniper. She breathed a sigh of relief and signalled for help. She could see him signal back and he disappeared from the window.

As she waited, a voice rattled the field.

"**SUCCESS! WE HAVE SECURED THE ENEMY INTELLIGENCE." **

Fem-Spy smiled in spite of herself. The Intel had made it to their base. Spy had made it back as well, she assumed. Had he sent word about her? She wondered if he hadn't. It bothered her. Even if the Spies weren't the friendliest class, they wouldn't leave a comrade out to die.

'_They would leave me.'_

Fem-Spy was shocked at the thought that had just come into her head. She dismissed it. She was just bitter and in pain.

"'Ello Shelia." The Australian voice startled her. It was the Sniper. His rifle was slung over his shoulder and he was carrying his kukri in his hand.

"_Bonjour_ Sniper. Thank you. You saved me."

"Yeh, sorry 'bout taking so long." He put away his knife and bent down to examine Fem-Spies legs. There was silence.

"_Monsieur_ Sniper?"

"Yeh?"

"'Ow did you find me?"

"Well, I was lucky," Said Sniper, "One 'o our Spoihs came in with the Intel, but 'e was ambushed by a Pyro," Alarm jumped into Fem-Spy's mind. Was it him? It had to be, no one else had held the briefcase.

Sniper glanced at Fem-Spy, "'E helped us fight off the rest 'o the BLU's, they had surrounded us, ya see, and then 'e dropped off the Intel. 'E was burned up like a right match stick, so Doc sent 'im straight to the infirmary. Before 'e went, I heard 'im say there was someone still outside. It sounded like he wanted to get back out here bad. I just thought he meant yer BLU friend."

Fem-Spy thought about what he said. Spy had been injured, by a Pyro no less. Burns were painful; it would take time to heal, even with the Medigun. She then found herself doing something she hadn't done recently; worrying. Sure, she feared for her own life, but not the lives of others. Lives were so short here that it was dooming yourself to forge real relationships.

"Anyway," Said the Sniper, breaking her line of thought, "What'd that Scout do to yer leg? Looks awful."

"'E broke my knee, or rather shattered eet." Fem-Spy winced. She could almost feel the tiny bits of bone swimming in the spot her joint used to be. It made her feel sick.

"Ah, well, Scout's are spastic little gremlins, ain't they?" Sniper smiled. He gave the rest of her a once over and saw her destroyed jacket. His eyes widened, "Blimey, he didn't ... do anythin' to yeh, did he?"

Fem-Spy looked down in alarm, "Ah! _Non_, you shot 'im before zhat."

There was an awkward silence.

"Roight. Well, we best get ya to a Medic if ya wanna walk again."

"_Oui_. 'Ow will I get base to zee base?"

"No problem luv. I'll jus' carry ya back. You're a tiny little thing anyway." Fem-Spy opened her mouth to protest. She was not going to be lugged around like baggage.

Before she could say anything, Sniper hoisted her into his arms, bridal style. In that moment she felt a very strange emotion. She felt happy and safe. She was happy that someone, no matter if she had known this person for more than a minute, cared about her. The emotions she had learned to shun on the battle field flooded back, the perplexity of them dazzling her. She felt safe in this man's lean arms, as if nothing could hurt her. It scared and fascinated her at the same time. She lay in that moment, feeling safe for the first time in weeks.

And that's when the pain from her jolted leg injuries hit her brain.

* * *

_I wonder where the other Fem's are?_

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments are better then ice cream!_


	5. Crutches and Cigarettes

_Another chapter? Already? Yeah, I'm suprised too. School is not helping with my writing time. Oh well. _

_Zanna-chan: How about ice cream cake? That stuff is freaking delicious! :D_

_Evallin: Yeah, you have a good point. I really want to help my characters grow and change. Each of them has their own story, which is going to be played out along with Fem-Spy's. The other characters aren't just decorations to the OC. And yes, I hope Fem-Spy doesn't do anything to stupid or air-headed (or Mary-Sue-ish. Warn me if I start going down that road!)._

_ Sg-Pix: Long comment are loved, don't worry. :) I can promise we will see all the Fem's for both teams in the future. It may take a few chapters until we get there, but we will. _

_This chapter helped me mellow out. Hope you enjoy it!_

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

"If you try to valk again, I vill cut your legs off myself." The Medic glowered at Fem-Spy over his glasses. She had been almost shot in the leg and had her patella and part of her tibia smashed. Couldn't she lie still for a minute?

"_S'il vous plait, Docteur,_" Fem-spy tried to stand up from the cot she had been occupying. She had been in the infirmary for an hour until the Medic healed her legs. They were still weak and she couldn't walk without assistance. She had missed the post-battle debriefing and desperately wanted to get a look at the Intel they had captured.

"I must get to work. Is zhere anything you can do?" She asked.

Medic pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. "If you insist, I can give you a crutch to assist your valking. But you vill not be able to participate in tomorrow's battle, as your legz vill be to veak to run."

Fem-Spy considered this. "_Bon_," She said, "give me zee crutch_, si vous plait_."

Medic turned briskly and walked to another bed with a Heavy lying in it. Fem-Spy blinked. Was she supposed to get it herself? She felt a tap on her shoulder.

"I believe you need zis?" A younger Medic (also German) was standing there, beaming and holding a single crutch.

"_Merci._" Fem-Spy took the crutch and stood up. She opted for putting her weight on the foot that had not had its main joint shattered. She still winced.

"He iz just busy," Said the young Medic, quick to defend the dismissive actions of his mentor. Fem-Spy nodded.

"I understand. What were our final casualties today?" The number of deaths was always announced at the post-battle debriefs.

"Ach, I believe five dead. Two Soldiers, a Sniper, a Scout und a Heavy."

Fem-Spy processed this. Five was a lot for one battle. She thanked the young Medic and headed for the Intel room. The crutch was slowing her down horribly, but it was still better then lying in a medical cot for the rest of the night. As she turned a corner she wound up face-to-face with Fem-Demo.

"Aye lassie!" She said with a broad smile, "Ah was jus' comin' by tae try an' find yeh! I didn't see yeh at the post-battle meetin', but they didn't say any Spies kicked the bucket. Glad tae see you're okay," She glanced at the crutch, "In a manner 'o speakin'."

"_Merc_i. 'Owever, I will not be participating in zee battle tomorrow."

Fem-Demo raised an eyebrow. "Didn't one 'o the Nurses fix yeh up? Aye figured walkin' meant yeh were good to go."

"_Oui_, but I wanted to see zee Intel we 'ad captured today, and my injuries 'ave not fully 'ealed yet." Fem-Spy looked at her feet. She suddenly felt ashamed. She would be putting her team down a man tomorrow, just so she could look at the spoils of today? How selfish could she get? Fem-Demo grabbed her shoulder roughly, shaking her out of her moment of self pessimism.

"Well, aright. I heard they picked up some odd stuff todae. Best of luck to yeh." Giving her a hearty clap on the shoulder, Fem-Demo strode down the hallway. Fem-Spy watched her round the corner. She was amazed that Fem-Demo had so much confidence. It was like she knew she could do anything and no one could stop her. As she walked away she heard the sound of an Engineer's laughter coming from the corner Fem-Demo had passed.

The rest of the journey to the Intel room was uneventful. She saw her Pyro friend, but he (or she, maybe?) only gave her a wave and quickly shuffled past her. Upon reaching her desired location, she found the room occupied by three other Spies, all sitting at the long table. The British Spy, the multi-cigarette-smoking Spy and the head Spy. She ignored the latter and hobbled toward the other two men who were scanning several papers that she hadn't seen before. The multi smoker looked up as she approached.

"Ah, good to see you're back on your feet," He gave her a reassuring smile, "We've been reviewing the documents from earlier. We also heard about your part in the capture of the Intel. I must say I'm impressed."

"Ah, _merci_," Fem-Spy gave a quick glance to the head Spy, who pointedly ignored her, "What 'ave we learned?" She asked as she eased herself into a chair.

"Not much concerning weaponry," Said the British Spy, "There's something in here about a computer of some kind. It seems too big to be related to the BLU base or its inhabitants. The name is spelt gee-ell-eh-capital dee-oh-ess."

The next few hours were spent discussing the pilfered files. Some of the knowledge was deemed as usable, while some was just useless. What did a recipe for black forest cake have to do with anything? Other Spies came and went, passing along the information and occasionally joining in the conversation.

After a while the two Spies left the table, heading for the mess hall. Fem-Spy gave a simple goodbye, saying she wouldn't be joining them. She wasn't particularly hungry and it wasn't like she needed the energy for tomorrow. The head Spy also left without a word to her. Fem-Spy didn't know why, but it hurt. She had at least expected an explanation for earlier. She wasn't going to chase after him though; she couldn't even if she wanted to.

Later, after almost passing out on the table, Fem-Spy decided it was time to go to bed. She stifled a yawn as she stumbled out of the Intel room. Maybe she should just sleep there. It was where she would be spending most of her time tomorrow anyway.

As she turned the corner to the Support's section of the sleeping quarters, she ran smack into someone. A Spy. THAT Spy. Fem-Spy felt an unfamiliar heat rising in her cheeks.

"_Monsieur_ Spy," She said flatly, "_Je suis désolé_, I was going to bed and-"

"I'm sorry." Said Spy.

A beat passed. And then another.

"_Excusez-moi_?"

"I apologize for not sending someone to come and get you sooner," He fiddled around the inside pocket of his jacket, looking for his cigarette case, "I was... 'eld up upon my arrival at zee base," His hand found the case and he drew out a white cylinder.

As he lit it Fem-Spy looked closer at his body. She saw telltale white bandages in the cracks between his suit and gloves, and touches of red around his chin. Burn marks. She inwardly winced.

"I understand." Fem-Spy swallowed.

"'Ow are your legs? I didn't zhink you would be walking so soon."

"Well, I really shouldn't be, but I wanted to see zee intelligence from today."

Spy gave her a disapproving glance. "You're wasting yourself. Now we will be down a Spy for tomorrow."

"I'm sorry."

He wasn't finished. "I 'onestly cannot spend my time worrying about zee lack of Spies on our team."

"Oh, really? I zhought you were just worried about me."

Spy's eyes widened. Fem-Spy almost slapped herself. Where did that come from? What was she saying?

Oh the Hell with it. She had been put in a corner by men all her life. Why not mess with this one? Because, she _was_ messing with him. Obviously.

Spy swallowed. "Well, I 'ave a responsibility to zee team members-"

"_Non _Spy, I meant just me," Fem-Spy subtly leaned toward him. Where was she going with this? She was acting on instinct now. She saw the Spy's eye darting around the hall; looking up, down, anywhere but at her face.

"_Mademoiselle._" He began. She kept her eyes locked on the Spy. She knew she was teasing, but it felt like there was something stirring inside of her. She felt the problem solving part of her brain click on, mixed with a soft yet lustful feeling. She looked at the man in front of her seeing him as a puzzle. She wanted to figure him out, that was who she was. He was a man of intrigue and mystery, so full of secrets, the things that she loved. And yet there was the lust...

That's when he stuck something in her mouth.

Fem-Spy nearly gagged. It was the cigarette Spy had been smoking only seconds earlier. She gently rocked backward inhaling the comforting smoke, her eyes shifting momentarily out of focus. Where was she?

Spy tapped his lips with his fingertips, watching her. "Are you quite alright, _Mademoiselle_?"

Fem-Spy plucked the cig from her mouth and exhaled slowly. "_Oui_, I am just tired," She contemplated her words, "I will be going to my room now," She gave him one last, long look and trudged down the hallway. She didn't look back, but she could feel the Spy's eye watching her go.

Upon reaching her room Fem-Spy plunged onto her mattress.

"_Suis-je fou?_" She mumbled into her pillow, "_Merde! Stupide__, stupide moi!"_

What had she been thinking? Did she think he was he worried about her? She was in a war! There would be no end to the embarrassment if someone found out about her outburst. Not that she believed Spy would tell anyone.

Fem-Spy lay on her back, her knee still throbbing. She felt so tired. Eventually, her mind drifted out of cursing and frustration and into dreams.

* * *

_Hurrah for screwing up sexually-tense moments._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments are cooler then the Spy himself! (Oh yeah, I went there.)_


	6. Showers in the Early Morning

_Hey, another chapter. Awesome. Kind of rushed, I apologize._

_Zanna-chan: Lol, I think so to. And Head Spy is not his name. I only use it to differenciate him if there are a bunch of Spies in the same room. I will be refering to him as just 'Spy' as much as I can._

_some1_u_dont_no: YEAH, some people should start uploading their fics and stop creeping mine. :D_

_Nagisha: Thanks. I'm glad someone who doesn't like OC's likes my fic. I hope that's a good sign for Fem-Spy. xD _

_Evallin: Thank you so much! I hoped someone would pick up the references. :) I'm glad the scene worked, and it doesn't matter if you write or not. It has as much merit as anything. Thanks for the reviewing, I really appreciate it._

_general-tommy: Thank you. I know, descriptions, right? If the chracters don't have much description, they look pretty much the same as the canons (with exceptions of Fem-Spy and Fem-Scout). Keep pestering me, I will keep working on it. :)_

_**CONCERNING NAMES:** Some of my characters most likely will get names in the future, but that doesn't mean I will refer to them as such in the fic. Fem-Spy will always be called Fem-Spy in text. Same goes for all the other characters._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

The moonlight was cold and white, like a porcelain cup had been stretched along the bedroom floor.

Fem-Spy opened one eye. Her eyelids felt like cement, coxing her to drag them down. She obeyed. A few minutes passed and the familiar sensation of sleep did not return. Fem-Spy rolled onto her back. Her body felt stiff and sore. She opened both eyes, not without effort. It was still late, or perhaps early. She glanced at the clock on her nightstand. It read 4:02 AM. Two hours until the alarm rang out through the base, signalling the official start to the day. Not that she would be a part of it.

Not optimistic about her chances of getting back to sleep, Fem-Spy got up and walked to her mirror. She looked at herself and saw she had slept in her clothes. Tentatively she gave her underarm a sniff. The speed at which she threw her head back would shock some people. It was clear, she needed a shower.

'_Right now?,_' She glanced at the clock again. Why not? It's wasn't like anyone would bother her, and she didn't think she'd be getting to sleep again. She might as well make use of this time.

She grabbed her toiletry bag and slowly opened the door of her room. The lights in the hallway were dim and there was no sign of human life. Carefully closing her door, she listened for any sounds. The only thing she heard was the occasional snore or grunt from one of the other rooms. Fem-Spy tiptoed down to the locker room and glanced around the shower area and the area with the toilets. She found it to be empty as well. Not that she had expected anyone to be there, but she was still glad for the vacancy.

Fem-Spy quickly stripped down and slipped into one of the shower stalls. With females now in the base the usual routine of hygiene had to be changed. At least, that was the consensuses. In truth northing official had been done. The shower stalls prevented most of the peeping, though Fem-Spy had taken to bringing a gun with her into the stall, just in case. She'd had to shove it in some poor Demo or Scout's face a few times, but generally she had been left alone. The other female REDs had taken to the showering without much issue. One memorable morning while the team was getting ready for a battle, one of the Engineers had asked Fem-Demo if her 'bombs' were really as impressive as they looked on the battle field. This had gotten a few sniggers and grins, at least until Fem-Demo had ripped off her vest and shirt in full view. She stood in her bra and asked if they were indeed as good as they looked. The dumbfounded group of men just gawked. Fem-Demo was not a small woman, in body shape or bust size. Fem-Spy had giggled like a maniac but opted to change in the stall. She felt extremely inadequate in comparison to the female Demo.

Fem-Spy turned the shower knob and shivered as the cold water hit her skin. She frantically fiddled with the knob in an attempt to heat the water. As the temperature went up, she felt her muscles relax. The discomfort faded as the water hit her parched skin. She leaned forward until her entire head was under the stream and felt the liquid trail through her hair and down her face. She washed her hair and body and simply stood under the shower head for several more minutes. Eventually she had to turn off the water and step out of the stall, the cool air of the locker room forming goose bumps on her exposed flesh. She quickly dried herself and slipped into a nightgown. She tied her hair into a simple bun and began to take her leave. It was then she heard a noise. It was not a mechanical noise, nor anything that had come from her own body.

There was someone else in the locker room.

Fem-Spy's mind immediately jumped to all the worst conclusions. Was it an enemy? A BLU? She didn't have any weapons with her. Maybe it was just a rat. There were no rats in the base. Maybe she was hearing things.

The noise sounded like it had come from the area behind the wall, where the sinks and mirrors were. Fem-Spy silently moved to look around the corner. She pressed herself against the wall and inched toward the corner. Carefully, she inclined her head and looked around to the sinks. What she saw surprised her.

It was Fem-Scout. She was missing her hat and shoes but it clear from the red hair that it was her. She was scrunched into a ball under the sink, her arms wrapped around her legs and her forehead resting on her knees. She didn't even notice Fem-Spy approach her.

"Scout?" The young New Yorker looked up with a start. Her eyes were red-rimmed and her face was wet. She squinted at Fem-Spy, as if she couldn't recognize her.

'_I'm not wearing my mask.'_ Fem-Spy didn't know if this was a good thing of a bad thing. "Eet's me, Spy."

Fem-Scout sniffed, "Um, h-hey. I was jus' - I couldn't sleep so... I should go," She made an attempt to stand up, but couldn't seem to get her legs to work, "I-I jus' need, I jus' need..." Her voice trailed off in a volley of sobs as she buried her face in her hands.

Fem-Spy stumbled over to the other girl, grimacing at the returning pain in her knee. She squatted next to Fem-Scout and pulled a hand away from the girl's face.

"What is zee matter?"

"Nothin'."

Fem-Spy rolled her eyes, "Eef eet was nothing, you would not be 'ere." She sat and placed a comforting arm around Fem-Scout's shoulder. The truth was this scared the Hell out of her. She had never EVER seen any of her team mates in such distress, let alone in a locker room at four in the morning. At the same time she felt she had some duty to Fem-Scout, as a fellow RED but also as a girl.

"What is wrong?" Fem-Spy asked gently.

"You're gonna think it's stupid." Fem-Scout wiped eyes aggressively.

Fem-Spy gave a small chuckle, "I am sure I 'ave cried over stupider zhings."

Fem-Scout gave a tiny smile, "Okay, well today, y'know, at the battle? I was fightin' my way through sum bitchy Soldiers, and me an' this other Scout were gonna clear the front of the BLU base, right?" Fem-Spy nodded, "So, I run right in an' he says, 'No, we have to Spy check!' an' I said, 'We'll be fine, c'mon.'"

Fem-Scout began to choke back sobs now. "So we run in and t-there's no one there. We figure it's clear, s-so we keep goin' along inside, plannin' to clear the whole th-thing out. We get to a corner, an' I turn it first, an' Jesus Christ, there's a BLU Spy! He cloaked right away an' Scout pulled me back, sayin' we had to stay back to back, so that fag Spy wouldn't get us. W-we stayed like that until Scout freakin' kicked me in the back, an' I go flying. When I get up I'm all, 'what the HELL man?' an' I turn and look and-and..."

She stopped, her body shuddering with sobs. Fem-Spy rubbed her shoulder. "Go on." She said softly.

"An' the Spy got 'im, right in the gut! 'E was goin' for me I guess, but stupid Scout pushed me out of the way," She paused to draw a breath, "So I ran. I ran all the way back. Solly said I shouldn't blame myself, and it's not my fault, which totally means it is-!" Fem-Scout broke down again.

Fem-Spy wrapped her arm around the crying girl, trying to process this information. There was one Scout on the list of casualties for today. That had to be the one she was talking about. Was he the same Scout from the table at breakfast? The one she had be wrestling with? It all seemed so long ago.

"I jus' can't seem to stop cryin'!" Fem-Scout's blubbering voice penetrating Fem-Spy's thoughts, "I dunno why, I jus' can't stop..."

"Zhat's fine," Fem-Spy wrapped both arms around the girl and ran a hand through her hair. "Sometimes eet's better to cry. My godmother said crying is a sign of weakness but... zhere is no one to see, so you just cry."

'_Damn that sounds lame,'_ Thought Fem-Spy. Fem-Scout looked at the woman.

"You had a godmother? Doesn't that mean you're real mum an' dad died?"

Fem-Spy swallowed, "_Oui._"

"Can you tell me about 'em?"

The French woman stared at the New Yorker, "About my parents? Zhey died when I was four years old, I barely knew zhem."

"Then tell me about you."

Fem-Spy furrowed her brow. She might as well tell the girl. What harm could it do? "Zhere is not much to tell. I am French. My parents were from France but I was born in America while zhey were on vacation," She smiled, "Two months early. Zhey died in a train crash when I was four and I lived with godmother and 'er two sons. I tried to be zee perfect _petit fille_, I went to 'Arvard, worked for zee CIA and was drafted 'ere. Not zhat exciting." She smiled at Fem-Scout.

"Nah," she laughed a little, "I'm sure you got some dirty little secrets in there, don't cha?"

Fem-Spy's smile dropped. She looked across the room. "We 'ave all done zhings we are not proud of Scout. In my experience, eet's best to leave zhose zhings be."

Fem-Scout gave a slow nod. The two sat in silence for what felt like an eternity. Fem-Spy turned back to the girl in her arms.

"So, you should get to bed. 'Ow are you going to stay awake later today, hm?"

Fem-Scout snickered. "Lotsa BONK."

They both laughed.

Fem-Spy walked the now weary Scout back to her room and gave a quiet goodbye. She then made her way back to her own room to get some much needed sleep.

As she lay on her mattress she stared at the moon fading fast in the wake of sunlight. She thought about both Scouts. Relationships were death sentence, she knew that, but she couldn't help feeling for this girl and her dead friend. She hadn't even known the boy but her connection to him felt strong. She rolled over on her pillow, away from the inevitable sunlight and thought about Fem-Scout.

"_Ne meurs pas,_" She whispered as she closed her eyes.

* * *

_'Ne meurs pas' means 'don't die'. Hurray for online translators._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments put me in my happy place! Yay!_


	7. A Late Breakfast

_Hey, yeah. What's up guys? Life sucks. School sucks. But you guys know that already._

_TheBestOfTimes: Thank you very much. :) Even if your not an author, as a reader the comment still means so much._

_general-tommy: I seriously raged when I read your comment. You're right, that would've been a great opportunity for description. I have a whole description thing-y planned but it's many, many chapters in the future, so I might be popping some smaller stuff in sooner. I also don't have a consistent posting basis. When I started, I figured about a chapter a week, but I may not be able to do that for a while. Hurray for sporadic updates! 8D_

_Nagisha: Hurrr... Yeah, I figured Fem-Spy would be more open with the females because of her strong opinion on social rights (I don't think I made this fact quite as obvious as I wanted to). It almost adds a... distrust (?) towards the men she's working with. Also, there are some issues in Fem-Spy's past that have given her this view (damn, now she sounds like a M-Sue), but we'll get to that later on. And yes, I personally dislike when characters are given names in fics. I end up forgetting who everyone is. :P_

_I'm not really happy with this chapter to be honest, I found it odd to write and abysmally short. It's a little something to wrap up the end of Fem-Spy's 'break'. Also, character intoduction. THE NEXT ONE WILL BE LONGER AND RELEASED SOONER I PROMISE!_

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

When Fem-Spy finally got up, her clock read 7:51 AM. Memories of Fem-Scout flooded back to her, what she had said, what she had told her. Why did she tell Fem-Scout those things? Her mind felt bogged down, still tired. How long had she been asleep since them? Two hours at the most. The fight had already begun.

She rolled out of bed and got dressed. Her knee felt good, though bending it too far caused her some problems. She headed out to grab some late breakfast and went straight to the intelligence room.

'_If anyone here knew me on a strictly personal level I must be quite boring.'_ Thought Fem-Spy as she assessed the information. There was so much of it and so much that didn't seem useful. Then why were the teams fighting so hard to protect it? Something in the equation didn't make sense.

At lunch the base was still empty. Fem-Spy decided to take an early break and scrounge up something good for her midday meal. Self indulgence food was in order.

On her way to the mess hall, Fem-Spy examined the grey corridor with the red stripe she walked down. She wondered why the Redmond Mann and 'Reliable Excavation Demolition' poured so much money into this team. What could be amongst the Intel and capture points that could be so valuable? What part did the mysterious woman known simply as the 'Administrator' play? She put aside these musings and she reached the kitchen and got to work on her meal.

An omelette, she decided. Something that tasted good with little to no effort to make. Perfect. She took off her gloves and collected her ingredients. The cooking put her at ease. It was a familiar routine that reminded her of daily life. At least, of life before she was drafted to RED. She didn't miss it, but the small acts of homeliness comforted her.

'_If I didn't get a proper job, I would probably end up in a kitchen anyway.'_ She thought sourly.

By the time she took the egg dish off the pan she was feeling the hunger pangs of eating a poor breakfast. She thought about her morning. In retrospect, she could have gotten up on time and gone to the pre-battle meeting.

'_Being selfish again.'_ Fem-Spy frowned at herself. She would make a great effort in the fight tomorrow, she promised. She opened a drawer and searched for a knife and fork.

Just then a large explosion shook the base.

Fem-Spy grabbed the countertop in surprise. She instinctively looked toward the direction of the battlefield. What the Hell could have caused an explosion that large? She carefully took her meal and utensils to the nearest table in the mess hall. She ate quickly, hardly tasting the soft red peppers and ham she had added to the cooked eggs. She left her plate in the already filled sink. The invisible kitchen staff would take care of it. She made to the leave, but before she could reach the door the handle began to turn on its own. Fem-Spy's eyes widened. There was someone else this deep in the base? She plastered herself against the wall next to the door and waited for it to open, flicking open her butterfly knife. The door opened and the person stepped inside. Fem-Spy grabbed the shoulder of the invader and drew her knife to their neck.

"With my apologies," She whispered into the ear of her victim.

"ACH! _Nein, _please!" The voice sounded familiar. She looked down and saw the red gloves of a Medic.

"Ah, _Monsieur_ Medic? _Excuse-moi._" She stepped back, embarrassed.

The Medic turned around. It was the same young man who had given her the crutch yesterday. "Oh Frau Spy, I'm glad it's just you. I vas looking for you. I knew you vere not going into battle vith you're legs in such a state, but I hadn't seen you all day," He looked sheepish, "I thought you might have be hurt by ze explosion."

Fem-Spy gave a sigh of relief. "Oh, I am fine. But, why are you still 'ere, and not in zee battle?"

"My superior told me I could not go into ze fighting until I had enough experience under his vatch." The Medic turned his head, as if in shame, "He is a very strict man."

As the Medic stared into the kitchen Fem-Spy noticed a slight discolouration along his cheek bone. She grabbed his chin and turned his face to hers.

"Frau Spy?" Asked the Medic nervously. Fem-Spy ignored him. She studied the spot on his face. It was a bruise, extending along his cheek bone to the side of his face and past his ear where it disappeared into his neatly cut hair. The skin was blotchy purple and blue, though it was contained. It looked like he had been struck by something.

"'Ow did you get zhis?" Asked Fem-Spy, trying to quell the alarm in her voice.

"Get vhat?" Asked the Medic. He tried to avoid her gaze.

"Do not 'what' me. Zhis bruise. It looks terrible." She caressed the area with her hand. The Medic winced at her touch. The skin felt unnaturally cold through her glove. _'He was icing it.'_ She thought.

"I-I fell."

Fem-Spy gave him an annoyed look. "You do not fall and get a bruise like zhis. Did someone 'it you?"

"No!" The Medic responded much too quickly. "I vas clumsy und did zhis to myself."

Fem-Spy backed off. Alarms were going off in her head. Who could have done this? Playful punches happened all the time, but outright violence? She wanted to ask the man, but knew better then to press. She decided to let it go. By now the Medic had seemed to relax.

"_Ja_, vell," He took a deep breath, "I have work to do. _Guten tag,_ Frau Spy." He clumsily made to leave.

"_Monsieur_ Medic!" He looked back. Fem-Spy kept her eyes on him. "Would you like any 'elp?"

The young man's face lit up as if it were Christmas. "_Ja, danke sher!"_ He grabbed Fem-Spy's hand and pulled her out the door. The thought of Intel briefly popped into her head. She could leave it for one afternoon, couldn't she? How bad could helping at the infirmary be? Maybe she could learn some thing.

As they reached the infirmary, the Medic spoke up. "My name is Franz, by ze vay."

Fem-Spy was about to give her own name but bit her lip in hesitation. Franz glanced at her and smiled.

"I vas not asking for a name trade Frau Spy. I just vanted you to know."

He pushed the doors open and made his way inside.

* * *

_Medics are so cute before their souls are crushed by the horrors of war._

_Fem-Spy will be back on the field by the next chapter, I promise you._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make me Uber happy! (Get it, UBER? I am so clever :B)_


	8. Teamwork in a Bad Land

_Alright, here we go again. Another chapter is up!_

_This was going to be a much longer chapter, but I cut it up to save the trouble of lots of scrolling. Altogether it was also a bit of an information overload. The next bit will be out soon._

_Enjoy._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

"**MISSION BEGINS IN THIRTY SECONDS!"**

"Defending sucks." Fem-Scout flicked a spot of dirt off her bat.

"Might as well get over it girl," The Engineer triple-checked his toolbox. He closed it with a satisfied 'clunk'. "We're here for, what-another week?"

"Aye. She's goot a point, yeh know." Said Fem-Demo as she looked down the barrel of her grenade launcher.

"Prrrsnnnlly, mrr lrrrrv ttt." Pyro waved his flamethrower in the air.

"**MISSION BEGINS IN TEN SECONDS!"**

"Shouldn't we be focusing on zee mission?" Fem-Spy checked her disguises. She sucked on a cigarette in anticipation.

"Nah, we're as focused as we'll ever be." Fem-Demo took a swig from her bottle.

"**Five!" **

"Just don't get yourself killed." Fem-Scout said with surprising seriousness.

"**Four!"**

"I could say the same tae you."

"**Three!"**

"Jus' do your best ladies." Engineer smiled over his sentries.

"**Two!"**

Fem-Spy extinguished her cigarette.

"**One!"**

The whole of Badlands was silent.

The alarm sounded.

The gates opened.

It had been a week since Fem-Spy had her day off. The teams had moved from Double Cross to Badlands. Fem-Spy found fighting for control points an extremely uninteresting pursuit. There was no new Intel coming in, which gave her copious amounts of free time in the evenings. She had no idea what to do with this time and tried to get 'inspired' by her teammates.

Fem-Demo drank the nights away with the rest of her class, and occasionally dropped in on the Engineers. The Scouts, Fem-Scout included, played games or ran around the base, bothering whoever they could. The majority of the Soldiers stayed locked in their own 'war room', discussing battle plans and strategies that would most likely never see the light of day. Spies kept to themselves. Heavies, Medics, Snipers and Pyros spread themselves over the entire base, mingling with other classes whenever they felt like it.

Fem-Spy resigned herself to looking at the old Intel for the first few nights. Eventually, the other Spies _gently_ insisted that she leave the Intel alone and find something else to do with her time. At first she confined herself to her own room, until Fem-Scout (literally) dragged her out and into the RED's recreation room to converse with her other 'friends'. The rec room was not dingy, but it lacked windows and therefore any natural light. There was a large couch, an old television, a radio, some chairs, tables and a large pool table in the back corner, which was missing four of its billiard balls. Three hanging lights bathed the room in a fuzzy yellow glow. Most of the team gathered there in the evenings.

Fem-Spy now spent her time chatting with her fellow REDs over whatever topic they could think of, from politics to world affairs to social rights (on which she had a very strong opinion). She didn't drink, though one Demo was extremely eager to get everyone intoxicated. No one minded, as most of the team ended up having a glass in their hand. Nights became more bearable, Fem-Spy found, if you had people to share them with.

As of now they were in Badlands, fighting for control points.

Fem-Spy decided to get deep into BLU's defences and fast. She cloaked immediately and snuck past the offensive group of Heavies and Soldiers rushing into RED territory. She slipped on an Engineer disguise and rushed forward to the BLU base. She stopped outside the building and assessed her position. There were sentries just inside, and many Engies and Medics. This would take some planning. Just as she was going to make her move a BLU scout rushed up to her.

"Need a dispenser here!" The Scout called to the disguised Fem-Spy. "A little help here!" Fem-Spy saw his arm was bleeding, and apparently not going to run inside.

"Awright boy, sit tight." Fem-Spy turned as if she were about to build something. The BLU Scout was still staring at her. She knelt down, considering her options.

"C'mon let's go!" The Scout yelled.

There was no way to sneak attack. _'I'll need a more direct approach.'_ Though Fem-Spy. She turned and swung her knife toward the Scout. Before she could strike him however his head exploded. Blood, bone and grey matter showered the dirt in front of her. She scanned the horizon and saw a RED Sniper on the roof of one of the buildings. He waved at her. She returned with a vexing shake of her hand.

'_Ruining all my fun.' _Thought Fem-Spy half bitterly. She ducked around the base to see if there was another way in. She found a back entrance with less security. Only one Engineer and Medic. She also noticed a BLU Pyro letting out sporadic bursts from his flamethrower, _'Great, another block in the road.' _

A tap on her shoulder interrupted her thoughts. It was Spy.

"_Mademoiselle_, would you feel up to assisting me?"

"With what?" Asked Fem-Spy.

Spy rolled his eyes, "With invading zee BLU base. Or 'ave you forgotten why we are 'ere?"

Fem-Spy frowned at the comment but grudgingly accepted his offer for a joint-invasion. They both disguised themselves as BLUs, Fem-Spy as a Pyro and Spy as a Sniper.

Fem-Spy lifted her mask and addressed Spy, "Are you sure we will get in?"

"_Non_." Said Spy flatly. He drew out his butterfly knife and held it to Fem-Spy. She looked at him.

"_Merci_, but I already 'ave one of zhose."

Spy looked exasperated, "We are both in full health, zhey will check us for sure. Stab me."

Fem-Spy was taken aback, "Stab you? I am not going to stab you! Stab yourself!"

"Zhere is no time. A self inflicted wound would be obvious, especially to zheir Medic. Just give us a legitimate reason for coming back to zee base." Fem-Spy didn't move. "Stab me or I will stab you!"

In one swift motion Fem-Spy grabbed the knife and plunged it into her comrade's arm. He grimaced slightly but made no sound. Fem-Spy inwardly winced. She never thought she would be stabbing her own teammates.

"Ready?" Spy clutched his arm. The blood was flowing freely now. Fem-Spy nodded and pulled down her mask. The pair rounded the corner and ran toward the defending BLUs.

"Oi mates!" Spy yelled, imitating an Australian accent perfectly, "We ran into a spot 'o trouble. Looks like the damn REDs are pushin' back." He passed the BLUs and made his way toward a dispenser. He crouched beside it, muttering and cursing.

'_I didn't even see the dispenser.'_ Mused Fem-Spy.

"Are the RED swine close?" The Medic sounded American. He also sounded upper-class and uptight.

"Mrrrfff nrrrff yuugh!" Fem-Spy called from her mask. She had no idea what Pyros really said under their masks. She hoped she could portray some sense of urgency, at least.

The BLU Pyro seemed to be eyeing her suspiciously. Not that she could see his (or her) eyes. Fem-Spy felt a drop of sweat roll down her cheek. She began to gesture toward the source of the battle.

"Nuuurm yughf fugh. Mphhhh mpphhhh." Fem-Spy prayed this would work. She saw Spy advancing upon the Medic. "Hudda hudda!" She threw in for good measure.

"I can't understand-" The Medic was cut short. The Pyro wheeled around to where the Medics body now lay. Spy had already cloaked.

"Mmph mphna mprh!" Fem-Spy shouted, pointing to the Engineer who had been oblivious to the whole situation. He glanced up at the raised voices. The BLU Pryo leaped toward the Engie, flamethrower ablaze.

"The Hell-?" The Engie jumped back in alarm, "I'm on yer team ya damn fire bug!" As the flames crawled up the man's legs, he raced toward the dispenser only to find it with a sapper sitting comfortably on its top, showering the ground with sparks.

'_He's good.'_ Fem-Spy smiled slightly. She discarded her disguise and advanced on the Pyro. His suit may have repelled fire, but it was no match for metal.

The BLU Engineer turned to see both his companions' dead. Fem-Spy bent down and pulled the knife out of the Pyro's back. She glanced at the petrified BLU and, more out of demented pleasure then anything, gave a tiny, wicked smile. The Engineer made a small noise. He then turned and ran into the base. Spy materialized in front of Fem-Spy shaking his head in a disapproving manner.

"I figured you would get 'im." Fem-Spy cleaned off her knife.

"You were closer," Spy let out a puff of smoke from his cigarette, "I 'ad to sap zee labourer's contraptions. And dispose of zee Medic."

Before Fem-Spy could respond a voice rang across the Badlands.

"**ADITIONAL TIME HAS BEEN AWARDED!"**

Fem-Spy gave her companion a sideways glance, "Would zhat be for us?"

Spy plucked his cigarette from his lips. "_Non_, I do not believe so," He pointed to the BLU control point, sitting on a raised section of rock closer to the RED base, "Eef it was to our advantage I believe zee BLUs would be dropping back to defend their point -"

"And zhey are not, so zhey must be pushing forward. _Merde,_" Fem-Spy squinted out to the field see if any of the REDs were approaching the base, "We should drop back."

"_Oui,_ no doubt zee labourer sent word back to 'is comrades."

No sooner had Spy said this, when there was the sound of a Russian voice calling out from the BLU base and the spinning of a Minigun barrel. Fem-Spy was frozen in place. They were right outside the entrance to the base, with no cover and no support. Spy turned and gave her a pained smile.

"I zhink zhis would be a good time to run."

And so they did.

RED lost its final control point six and a half minutes later.

* * *

_Badlands is a fun map. Sometimes._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make my heart soar!_


	9. A Cold Dish

_Well it's been forever hasn't it? Long update is loooong. Quite long, actually. Prepare for dialogue._

_general-tommy: Your right. Although Valve hasn't said so, I guess the teams aren't restricted to their bases. I figured it would be easier to keep track of everyone, and if the teams are moving around (like they are in my story) I didn't think they'd have homes near the bases, since they keep moving. But, your point is VERY good, and I'll keep it in mind for future writing. Also, DETAILS. I'm working on it. Promise._

_I'm glad to see new readers! You guys are awesome and keep me motivated. Enjoy the chapter!_

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

The battle for Badlands raged for the rest of the day, ending poorly for the crimson shirted team.

"Eleven to twenty-for?" One of the Scouts commented during the post-war meeting at the end of the day. "That's pretty freakin' bad, even for us." The whole team was sitting in the long, red painted meeting room. Assorted chairs were placed in haphazard rows, all facing a small table that could barely pass for a podium at the front end of the room. Everyone was waiting for the day's final casualties and the team's performance review.

"MAGGOTS!" One of the Soldiers had made his way to the front of the room, "I just have to say all of you did a great job out there today."

The observers in the room exchanged glances.

"NOT!" He bellowed, "This was the sorriest EXCUSE for a WAR I have EVER SEEN! And I have seen more WARS then most of you have seen BIRTHDAY PARTIES! If Sun Tzu saw you PATHETIC PUPPIES, he'd beat the CRAP out of every single ONE OF YOU. AND I'D HELP!"

The Soldier continued to rant and rave for the next few minutes, occasionally bringing up some good points before smashing them down with a misinterpreted biblical reference or such. Fem-Spy waited out his verbal abuse with a tired longing. She wanted to lie down, go to sleep. She was positive no one else wanted to be here. It had been a long, hard day and the ever present fact that the REDs had been failed in winning it was not helping anyone's mood.

Total casualties were three, a Medic, a Demo and a Scout. Fem-Spy bit her lip at the mention of a Scout.

After they were dismissed the classes went their separate ways. Fem-Spy went straight to her room, pushing others out of her way in haste. When the door slammed she ripped off her mask and threw it on her nightstand. She jumped into her bed, disregarding the mirror or the mess on the floor. The sheets were cool, though scratchy. To Fem-Spy they felt like silk. She pressed her sweaty face against the pillow and felt the mattress contouring from the weight of her body. She didn't remember falling asleep.

A sharp knock at the door of Fem-Spy's quarters woke her with a start. The weary woman shifted slightly and turned her head toward the sound. She was still so asleep she must be hearing things. No, there was the knock again. There was someone outside her door.

Now came at time in Fem-Spy's life where she had to make a decision. She could get up from her bed and go see who was at the door. Or, she could stay in this warm, beautiful paradise of blankets and get some more glorious sleep.

Fem-Spy gave a small groan. Whoever it was had better have some life changing news with them.

Fem-Spy pushed herself out of dreamland and her bed. Without opening her eyes, she reached out and felt around her nightstand for her mask. Her hand closed around the familiar fabric and she slipped it over her face. She rubbed her eyes and moved to unlock the door.

She opened it to a Sniper. The same one who had saved her from the BLU Scout. The same one who she waved at earlier today. She would have been surprised, except she was to sleep-drunk.

"G'day Shelia," The Sniper gave her a once over, "Bloody Hell, ya look terrible. Have ya been gettin' enough sleep?"

Fem-Spy had a sudden urge to kick the man in the groin, but restrained it. "What do you want _Monsieur_ Sniper?"

"Well, it's almost seven 'o clock, an' you're not in th' mess hall. I volunteered to go find ya. Quite a few people think ya shouldn't be skippin' meals, eh?"

Fem-Spy leaned back into her room to look at the wall clock. It read 6:48 PM. She frowned. She had slept for an hour and a half? It didn't seem like that long. She pulled herself back towards Sniper.

"Alright. I will go to dinner now _Monsieur_," She said pointedly. Sniper didn't move. Fem-Spy rolled her eyes. "Is zhere something else you must tell me?"

Sniper grinned and scratched the stubble on his cheek. "Nah, but I'll be takin' ya to the mess, luv. If I let ya out of me sight, ya may just sneak back inta one o' those bloody gloomy meetin' rooms or such."

"Zhey are not 'meeting' rooms Sniper. Zhey 'old zee RED's most valuable information."

Sniper rolled his eyes and began walking as Fem-Spy went on about the Intel rooms. She ran to catch up, continuing to berate him with information he would likely go all his life without needing to know.

Eventually they made it to the mess hall.

"...And zhat is why zee cigarette cases are silver," Fem-Spy finished as they passed through the doors, "Gold simply would not do."

Sniper chuckled. "Whateva ya say Shelia."

Fem-Spy looked across the mess and saw Fem-Demo sitting with her usual crowd of Engineer, Pyro, Fem-Scout and another other Demo. Sniper tapped her on the shoulder.

"Ya got a place to sit?"

Fem-Spy nodded. "'Ave you?"

"Yeh, but it's jus' me and Spoih most of the time," He pointed out his dinner compatriot. Fem-Spy followed his finger. She wasn't surprised when it landed on a Spy. That Spy, of course.

"He's pretty quiet around the rest 'o the team," Sniper remarked. He looked down at her, as if he were expecting something. Fem-Spy saw what he was trying to do and sighed. She pinched the bridge of her nose with her fingers. She knew for certain she would regret this later.

"Would you like to sit with my companions and I?" Fem-Spy asked flatly.

A broad grin split Sniper's face. "Luv to Shelia. I'll grab my partner an' be there in two shakes."

As the lanky Australian strode across the mess hall Fem-Spy realized what he said. His partner? He meant partner on the field, right? No, Snipers and Spys would never be working together on the battle field. Their respective roles were too different. Sneaking and ranged shooting did not go well together. So, partners how? In a relationship? In an _intimate_ relationship? Fem-Spy suddenly felt very embarrassed. Relationships were strictly forbidden among teammates, everyone knew that. Maybe Sniper was lying to her. No, Spies lied. Snipers didn't.

She was still pondering this conundrum when she went to get her dinner from the buffet style serving table. Mashed potatoes, broccoli and some kind of chicken. She often wondered by whom the team's meals were served. There seemed to be an invisible staff around both bases. The same staff that served meals, cleaned the washrooms, did the laundry and cleared the battle field after every day of fighting. No personnel were ever seen, of course. It was another of the many mysteries tucked away in the RED base.

She scooped up a cup of hot water for her herbal tea as she made her way to the table. Sniper and Spy were already there. Sniper was at one end of the table, talking and laughing with Fem-Demo and Engie as if the trio had known each other their whole lives. At the other end, Fem-Scout seemed to be trying to explain the purposes of cardio training to Pyro and Demo. Spy sat in between the two groups, not saying a word to either.

Fem-Spy scanned the table. The only place to sit comfortably was directly across from Spy in the center of the table. She swallowed, her stomach feeling tingly. She placed her tray in the empty spot in the middle of the table and sat.

Spy fixed her with a straight stare. She suddenly felt very self conscious of her rumpled jacket and the circles under her eyes. Fem-Spy examined her food. She was still famished, didn't _feel _like eating anymore.

Spy's voice made her jump.

"I assume you are not 'appy with the day's final standings?"

Fem-Spy blinked. "Are you, _Moniseur_ Spy?"

"_Non_. I am simply attempting to start a conversation." Spy retrieved the silver rectangle for his jacket and withdrew a cigarette. As he flicked his lighter, Pyro whipped around to face him, as if expecting something. Spy paused a moment and then put out the lighter. He waggled his finger at the masked RED. Pyro turned back to his own conversation, looking dejected.

Fem-Spy smiled at the little exchange. She rested her elbow on the table and placed her chin in her hand.

"Zee days always seem to end with zee two of us conversing," Spy continued, exhaling smoke.

"You don't like zhat?" Fem-Spy arched her eyebrows.

"An observation."

"I enjoy conversing with you," Fem-Spy stated. And she was startled to hear that she was telling the truth.

It was Spy's turn to raise his brows. "Oh really?"

"_Oui_, you are an intriguing man." Fem-Spy played with her fork.

"'Ow do you know zhat is not an act? Part of my job?"

She placed the fork on the table. "Because I took zee same training as you. I know when a Spy is playing pretend."

Spy gaze a low chuckle. Fem-Spy frowned. "What is funny about zhat?"

"I apologize. I simply keep forgetting you _are_ a Spy."

"Is zhat a good thing?"

"_Oui_, you are playing your part exceedingly well."

She didn't like that. Fem-Spy chewed on her bottom lip and studied the Spy in front of her. He shifted the cigarette around in his mouth.

"I did pay attention in my training too, _Mademoisell_e, I know how eet is supposed to feel. Eet is supposed to feel real," He said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"What eef eet was real?" Fem-Spy questioned.

"Zhen we would 'ave a problem, wouldn't we?"

"A problem?"

"Teammates are restricted from 'aving romantic relationships. You know zhat, don't you?" Spy looked down his nose at Fem-Spy. She nodded slowly. Spy inhaled his stick of nicotine once more before putting it out on the edge of his plate. "'Ow would zhat work anyway? Your lover could be dead tomorrow for all you know."

"Zhen," Fem-Spy started, "What about, uh..." She trailed off. Spy looked at her ardently. She cupped her hand around her mouth and leaned toward him, "V_ous et Sniper_?" She whispered.

Spy just stared blankly for a moment. Realisation flickered in his eyes for a second, before a crooked grin stretched across his face. He began to giggle, which soon had him dissolve into a fit of stifled laughter and snorting. He covered his mouth in his palm in an attempt to quell the sounds and pounded the table with his fist. Fem-Spy regarded the man awkwardly. She looked to see if anyone else had noticed his reaction. She saw Fem-Demo surveying the scene diagonally left, across the table. She offered Fem-Spy a quick grin and thumbs up. Fem-Spy smiled back uncertainly. What was that for?

Spy had just about finished his laughing fit. Fem-Spy felt annoyed now, instead of embarrassed.

"Are you quite done?' She crossed her arms.

Spy snickered. "Just about."

"What was so funny?" Fem-Spy demanded.

"Zee fact you believed Sniper and I were fraternizing romantically," He grinned again, "Be aware, _Mademoiselle_ I am not, nor 'ave I ever been, in any sort of 'omosexual relationship."

Fem-Spy felt a slight heat creeping into her cheeks. "Well, zhen. I'm glad zhat is out of zee way."

Spy fiddled with his lighter. "So you can 'ave me to yourself?" He said with a smirk.

Fem-Spy bit back the urge to deny the suggestion or lash out, which was what she desperately wanted to do. That was exactly what Spy wanted. The man was a master at his trade, having his way with words and mannerisms, making her act the way her wanted her to. Like he was flirting with her, but of course, he wasn't. She had to keep and cool head. Two could play at this game.

"Of course," said Fem-Spy smoothly, "What would I do without your constant degradation of my skills as a Spy?"

"_Mademoiselle_, I tell you zhese zhings to make you a better at your job."

"Of course you do."

"Indeed. Eef you are doing a poor job, then zee rest of zee team must make up for what you lack."

"What I lack?" Fem-Spy was taken aback, "I do not wish to sound arrogant, but I am confident zhat I am not zee worst Spy here. I believe you nagging come from your distain with women," She inwardly smiled, "Or rather 'aving zhem as work partners."

Spy's mouth twitched upwards. "Ah, forgive me _Mademoiselle_, but zhat would be true," He eased back on the bench, adjusting his posture, "But, zee last time I completely trusted a women, she 'ad me beaten, tied to a chair and left in a 'otel room for three days."

Fem-Spy just stared at him.

This was not what she had expected at all. "Well, I suppose you concerns are justified," She said. She felt uncomfortable. She couldn't say anything to top that response.

"I'm glad you agree. Besides, you must know why we must keep you alive, _non_?"

Fem-Spy leaned over the table, "Because you simply love my company?"

A suspicious little half-smile curved Spy's lips, "Zhat as well. But do you 'onestly not realize your importance 'ere?"

"I am on a contract," Fem-Spy drummed her fingers on the table, "Zhis is work. I am one of the first in a, 'opefully, long line of female recruits. What else is zhere?"

"Zhis is not just work," Spy's face was now a mask of seriousness, "You and zee other two ladies are a trial run for females on zee battlefield. Your contract is a test. If two out of zee zhree of you can stay alive for zee duration of four months, zhere will be a serious consideration of keeping females on zee field. Eef you die..." Spy shrugged and reached into his jacket pocket for another cigarette, "Well, let's just say men will be zee only ones to see fighting for a long time."

There was a silence between the pair, offset by the background noise of the mess hall.

Fem-Spy thought about what she had heard. If Spy was telling the truth, this wasn't just a job. She was an unwitting test subject in a, literally, life and death situation. She didn't feel any different about her position. She still planned to stay alive. Though the idea she had been lied to bothered her a bit. That is, if he was telling the truth.

She examined him. Why would he lie? She didn't see any reason for him to do so, unless he really, REALLY liked messing with people. Spy was carefully lighting another cigarette. Pyro didn't turn around this time, but she swore she saw the red fire retardant suit quiver with what could have been excitement. She was tempted to pull a cig out for herself.

"'Ow do you know this?" She asked.

"I am a Spy. It is my job to know zhings." He clicked his lighter closed.

"You seem to know more zhen others."

Spy shrugged. "I 'ave been delving into information concerning my own team members for a while now. You could say eet's a hobby of mine," His face pulled into a smirk, "My current goal is locating zee RED team's personal files."

Fem-Spy wriggled slightly in her seat. Was he lying? Why would he lie about this? A better question was WHY would he do this? That was exactly what Spy wanted her to ask. She could see his careful manipulation of words, inclining her to indulge him in his 'hobby'. What the Hell, she couldn't deny she was curious.

"And why would you want to so deeply invade zee privacy of others? Besides zhat you are a Spy, of course."

Spy grinned. "I am glad you asked."

'_I'll bet you are.' _Thought Fem-Spy.

He continued, "I am curious about zee origins of some of my fellow team members. Some of zhem are a little bit, I don't know, crazy?" He glanced at Fem-Spy. She gave a small nod, the corners of her mouth reaching upward, "In any case, I trust my life in zheir hands even less zhen in yours and zhat is saying something."

Her smile vanished.

Spy pretended not to notice, "I wish to find out what made zhem zee way zhey are and possibly understand it. I do not wish to change zhem, but understanding zhem would be a great personal help." He inhaled deeply and blew smoke toward her.

A stale silence hung in the air. Fem-Spy broke it.

"_Monsieur_ Spy?" She asked.

"_Oui?_"

"Eef you do locate zee files, would you possibly consider sharing zhem...With me?"

A raised eyebrow was followed by a devilish smirk. "Why would you want to see zee files _Mademoiselle_? And why shouldn't you be able to find zhem yourself?"

"I 'ave my reasons." To be honest, Fem-Spy wanted to see Spy's file. She couldn't deny it. He was a mystery, and one she was determined to solve. Fem-Scout and Fem-Demo's previous lives tugged at her brain as well. "Besides, I am supposed to be zee perfect little girl Spy, _non_? Eef I am caught snooping around for classified information, I will be out of here faster zhen a Scout on Atomic Punch."

Spy considered her answer.

"Fair enough," he said, "Now, I 'ope you realize I will not do zhis out of the goodness of my 'eart. What will you give me in return?"

"Anything I can."

A moment later she realized the implications of what she had said.

Spy placed his elbows on the table and touched his finger tips together.

"Excellent," His voice was smooth and even.

'_Oh God_,' thought Fem-Spy. She mind dashed around the thoughts of what her previous statement implied. Her pulse quickened in anxiety. '_God, please not what I think he's thinking let him ask for anything else,'_ Her heart was racing now, _'Not sex please anything but that please God I can't do it I can't-'_

"Your Invisibility Watch, _s'il vous plait._"

Fem-Spy looked at him.

"_Pardon?_"

"Your Invis Watch, _Mademoiselle_," He extended his hand, "I damaged my watch in one of zee last battles today. Zee Engineer is currently repairing eet. I believe I will perform better on zee field with a cloak, don't you agree?"

Fem-Spy took a moment to calm her brain. It felt like a light bulb in her head that had grown to hot and exploded. This was not at all what she was expecting. She knew men in the corporate world, and they all wanted the same thing from working women. This was different. She couldn't decide whether this turn of events was pleasant or worrying.

Spy was still waiting with his hand outstretched. He rolled his eyes impatiently, "Come now, you will still 'ave your disguise kit. I will not be leaving you completely 'elpless."

Fem-Spy rolled up her sleeve and removed her Invisibility Watch with deliberate slowness. She dropped it into Spy's waiting palm.

"_Merci,_" He said, donning the watch himself, "Can I assume you will want something of mine as well?" He fiddled with the clasp.

"Of course," Fem-Spy hadn't even thought of that. He was right, if she had just given Spy the watch, there was nothing stopping him from just keeping it. Not that he would. Would he?

"Zhen what of my arsenal would you like?" Spy spread his wide, as if he were putting himself on display. Fem-Spy almost giggled at this. Almost. She was not a teenage schoolgirl, and he wasn't coming on to her. She was being allowed to take (well, borrow) a high grade weapon from a veteran in her field. Fem-Spy considered her options.

"Maybe I should just take your fancy cigarettes and disguise kit and we would be even on zee field." She suggested playfully.

'_Not a schoolgirl,'_ She reminded herself.

"_Quoi?_ I would 'ate to zhink zhat you would deny a man 'is cigarettes. And why waste such a prime opportunity?" Spy leaned back slightly, "Since you do not seem to know what you want allow me to provide some direction," He reached into his jacket and pulled out a gun. It was not just any gun, however. It was his Ambassador.

It was as if a hinge at the back of Fem-Spy's mouth had given way. Her eyes were locked on the beautiful, yet deadly weapon in Spy's grip. The polished wood handle shone in the fuzzy mess hall lights. The golden trigger twinkled mischievously. The engraving of a voluptuous woman on the oversized barrel seemed to wink at her. She couldn't believe it.

"I zhink you might need a little extra firepower eef you cannot cloak on zee field," he smirked.

"I...Suppose." Fem-Spy took the gun from his hand. It was heavier then she expected. As she curled her hand around the handle, she felt the cold metal through her gloves. It felt amazing.

"_Merci,_" She said softly, still taking in the details of the customized revolver. Spy had a smug smile plastered on his face as he watched Fem-Spy.

"Well, I'm glad we are at an agreement. When I find zee files, we shall give back each other's weapons. Agreed?" He extended his hand.

Fem-Spy tore her eyes away from the gun and glanced at the man's hand. She reached out took it, adding a firm shake. He did as well. They both lingered there for a moment, feeling the heat of contact through the two layers of gloves. Fem-Spy retracted her arm and carefully slipped the gun into the currently empty holster in her jacket. Good thing she left her revolver in her room.

She looked up to see Spy was staring at her face. She felt compelled to say something, but the half formed sentences kept slipping off her tongue and down her throat. Nothing was said for a few moments, until Spy turned around from a tap on his shoulder. It was Sniper, and Engie standing behind him.

"Come on mate," he said, "Engie's challenged me to a game of chess, and from what I've heard of his education, I'll be needin' some help." He motioned towards the door before looking up and shooting a smile to Fem-Spy. She returned it.

Spy elegantly stood from the table. He straitened his suit and cast a look toward Fem-spy. "Until our next meeting, _Mademoiselle_." Then the three men made their way out of the mess hall. Fem-Spy watched them go and released a sigh. That was an interesting dinner.

At that moment, Fem-Demo leaned over to Fem-Spy.

"What was that about?" She asked with a coy grin on her face.

"What was what?" Fem-Spy said, jumping slightly at the woman's voice.

"Y'know, yeh chattin' up that spy fella. The two o' yeh looked pretty chummy, if yeh know what I'm mean."

Fem-Spy cocked her head in an annoyed fashion, "We are nothing of zee sort. We 'ad a conversation, zhat is all."

Fem-Demo hopped around the table and slid down the bench so she was next to Fem-Spy. "Sure lassie. Yeh went right over an' sat in front of 'im. I'm sure yeh wanted to have a 'friendly conversation'. Yeh were gettin' all lovey-eyed. Jus' like a story book," Her voice was teasing, but Fem-Spy couldn't help but feel irritated.

She crossed her arms, "Demo, can I not 'ave a conversation with a man without 'aving feelings for 'im? Zhis is not a love story," She finished in a huff.

Fem-Demo tilted her head downward carefully. She stared at Fem-Spy through her thick eye lashes and said, "Ah never said it was a love story," her voice was even, the teasing gone, "An' he may 'a been your dinner partner, but yeh had more than jus' dinner on the mind."

Fem-Demo stood abruptly and left without another word. Fem-Spy stared after her dumbly. By now most of the tables were empty, and Fem-Spy wanted to go back to her room and think. About what, she didn't know. She made to leave before she noticed something. Her now cold food was still piled on her plate. Her lukewarm tea was still sitting patiently in its mug. She hadn't touched a thing. She'd forgotten all about it.

* * *

_Some action next chapter, cross my heart and hope to die._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments help me write! No, really!_


	10. Oh, Those Medics

_Oh, hello there. I have a new chapter._

_This was going to be split into two smaller chapters, but since I love you guys to get the full package. Yay!_

_general-tommy: I seriously love ALL of your reviews, do you know that? Thanks for touching on all the points, I hoped they came across logically enough. This fanfiction stuff is hard work. And yes bad title, I know. I changed it to something a bit less misleading(ish), I hope. The Spies relationship is probably going somewhere weird, so look out._

_Princess of Pyromania: Thank you! :) Relatable Fem-Spy is the best kind! Also, keep gaming girl!_

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

Fem-Spy entered her third month in the service of RED with gusto. The teams had moved to Gravel Pit and while Attack/Defend was not Fem-Spy's favorite activity, she felt optimistic about the area. It was her first time there and she was always up for something new.

In the second week of the team's stay, on a Monday, Fem-Spy went to breakfast to find a commotion in the mess hall. As she entered the room, she saw the majority of her team clustered around the far wall. There seemed to be a notice stuck to it that everyone seemed to be trying to read at the same time. Fem-Spy decided to wait until the crowd dispersed to examine the mystery paper. She gathered her morning meal and went to sit at with Fem-Scout.

"'Ello Scout," Fem-Spy began. She paused as she noticed the other RED sitting at the table next to Fem-Scout. It was Franz, the young Medic.

"Hey Spy!" Fem-Scout gave a broad smile and whipped her fork in Franz's direction, "Have ya met this Medic? His name is Franz, ain't that a weird name? Whateva, he's cool, so be nice to 'im, kay?" The German was leaning at a forty five degree angle to avoid the scrambled eggs Fem-Scout had flicked in his direction with the fork. He gave Fem-Spy a small smile.

"Ah, _oui_, we 'ave met." Fem-Spy sat herself across from the other two REDs.

"_Guten tag_, Frau Spy," Said Franz.

"Oh, okay." Fem-Scout seemed put out by the fact that her companions had already been introduced. She shoved a forkful of scrambled eggs in her mouth. "Wha were we talkin' about?" She asked with her mouth full.

"I believe somezhing about you not eating so much, so fast!" Franz said with slight alarm. He tried to pry the fork out of Fem-Scout's grip. She shoved him lightly. Fem-Spy noticed the absence of roughness in Fem-Scouts movement. It wasn't like the way she acted with the other Scout. It was gentler, more careful, as if she thought she would break Franz if she pushed too hard.

Fem-Spy ate her breakfast and listened to their boisterous conversation for a few more minutes. Sniper and Engie joined them before long.

"Have ya heard the news?" Asked Engie after the two had sat down.

Fem-Scout jumped up, "Hell yeah! I'm SO frickin' excited!"

"About what?" Asked Fem-Spy.

"Ya haven't seen the notice?" Sniper wrapped his hand around his coffee mug, "It was on the wall. We're havin' a three day long ceasefire at the end o' the week. Big deal, eh?"

Fem-Spy was shocked. Usually both teams had a one day ceasefire every Sunday (something Fem-Spy thought the RED/BLU companies had done out of respect for their employees, but she now considered it to be a bit of rather dark humour). She had never experienced a two day ceasefire, let alone three. Her first thought was horror. What would she do for three days with no fighting? It had been so long without new Intel and she had gone over the old information so many times she felt she would go crazy if she saw a page of it again.

"What days is zee ceasefire on? Friday, Saturday, Sunday I presume?" Asked Fem-Spy.

"Yeah. Personally, I thank God," Engie grinned, "I've been killin' for some time off. Just relax, read, kick off the boots, ya know."

"The best part," Fem-Scout burst in, "I heard there's gonna be a party! The Demos are gettin' a shitload of booze or whateva and we're gonna party all night! No battle the day after, so hangovers don't matter, am I right?"

Franz gave a disapproving look,"Are you even old enough to drink?"

"Of course I am!" Fem-Scout said defensively, "How about you? You look like one of my brothers!"

Franz blushed slightly and muttered something about not being anyone's brother. Fem-Spy tried to focus on finishing her breakfast. She ended up talking with Engie about his Sentries and Teleporters. She wanted to find weaknesses in the buildings to make her job easier, but didn't want to mention that to Engie outright. She felt he knew what she was after, but gladly explained more about the machines. After he began talking about the actual schematics and workings of the Sentry gun however, she was lost. Sniper looked on calmly and every once and a while popped into the conversation.

Breakfast was over soon enough, and everyone went to get prepared for the battle ahead. Fem-Spy went to the Spy's meeting room. She wasn't the last one there. As she waited, she made conversation with the British Spy. He was nice enough; Fem-Spy didn't feel strained with him like she had during the beginning of her recruitment. It was a pleasant feeling to relax around her work partners.

Soon enough the head Spy called the room to order. The group discussed strategies, points of attack and defence and where to set up buildings and miniature bases. Perhaps it was the notice of an extended ceasefire, or maybe it was just _that_ kind of day, but everyone seemed to acting differently. There were more silly, offhanded comments then usual and a lot more smiles. You could almost forget there was a war going on.

Before long, Fem-Spy found herself in the Resupply room, getting ready to jump into the fray. She looked at the timer above the door. Five minutes to the set up, six minutes to the battle. As she was checking the barrel of the Ambassador (Spy hadn't spoken to her about the RED team's files aside from the night they sat together in the mess hall), she felt a presence behind her. She turned. It was the Head Medic.

" _Guten tag Fraulein,_" He began, "I vanted to ask you if you have seen my Medic."

Fem-Spy was confused, "As I know, _docteur_, you 'ave many Medics under yourself. Could you be more specific?"

He glared at her over his glasses, "You know who I mean. Ze young boy, Franz, I believe. He keeps telling everyone his name. I saw him sitting with you und your...group at breakfast."

Fem-Spy regarded him carefully. The Medic seemed off, to say the least. There seemed to an unusual anger underneath his calm exterior. His mouth was in a firm frown and his eyes were cold and straight.

"I could not say where 'e is at zee moment," Said Fem-Spy carefully, "'Ave you asked Scout?"

"Ze _Fraulein_ Scout? _Nien,_" He said wrinkled his nose when he mentioned Fem-Scout, "If you see her before me, vould you tell her to stop cavorting vith my staff?"

"Why?" Asked Fem-Spy, "Zhey are just friends."

Medic leaned towards her, "_Entschuldigen Sie Fraulein_, but I do not need my Medics being distracted by ze ozzah members of ze team. Zey have a difficult job to do, und zey need to focus. You vouldn't vant a distracted Medic covering you, vould you?"

Fem-Spy felt uncomfortable. The intensity that the Medic was starting at her with was quite frightening. Fem-Spy felt like the Medic would reach out and strike her at any moment.

"Alright, zhen," She found her voice, "Eef I see either, I will say something."

"Excellent," Medic straightened up and looked around, "Good luck in ze battle, _Fraulein_." And he walked away.

Fem-Spy stood stock still. What just happened? She glanced around to see if anyone had taken notice. The rest of the team were checking their weapons or loading up on battle gear. No one had noticed the interaction. Was Medic always this... creepy? Fem-Spy couldn't think of any other word to describe him. It was the only time he had addressed her individually, unless it was concerning her immediate physical or mental health. During those times he seemed normal, if only cold and slightly aloof. Now that they'd spoken privately, it made Fem-Spy uncomfortable to think about him. How could this man seemingly care and protect the other members of RED?

She didn't have time to think about it however. Set up had already begun.

* * *

During the fourth round on Thursday, Fem-Spy noticed something. People on the field seemed happy. It was a strange feeling. To be sure, the REDs and BLUs had a certain adrenaline-fuelled excitement when they fought, but today was different. Perhaps it was the knowledge of a long ceasefire once the day was over. Whatever it was, the relentless killing seemed to be done with a smile on everyone's face.

'_I wonder if this feeling is contagious,'_ Thought Fem-Spy as she ran back into the Resupply. After she picked a new set of bullets, she made her way outside, heading for point B. Using the newly acquired Ambassador was putting great strain on her arms. The recoil every time she fired the massive gun put out a force that would break a lesser woman's arm. Fem-Spy had been trained in the use of guns like these, but no amount of weapons or strength training would ever quite get rid of the gun's vicious kick back. Fem-Spy didn't like it. It made her feel weak.

After a twisting around a corner and running down a ramp, she ran past the point currently safe in its wooden radar tower. She decided to pass the building by and went to hide in the tunnel next to the entrance tunnels to BLU's base, perpendicular to the tower. Fem-Spy was about to reach for her cloak, when she remembered she didn't have her Invisibility Watch. She had been doing that a lot. Instead she slipped into a Demoman disguise and pretended to be guarding the tunnel. In a few moments, she heard the sound of footsteps approaching. She turned to face a Heavy and Medic, heading straight for her. She stood frozen in place, not out of fear, but surprise. They were both women.

The Heavy stood at least seven feet tall, her muscular arms holding up the full weight of her Minigun. Her face was round and full, but not of fat. Her brown hair was tied messily on top of her head and her eyes were ablaze with excitement.

"Leetle man!" She called to Fem-Spy. She sounded Russian, or maybe Ukrainian, Fem-Spy couldn't tell. "Ve vill begin the attack soon. Is anyone else here? Ve must regroup!"

"Nah, I'm jus' covering the point. Don't want any RED's gettin' behind us."

"Good idea," It was the Medic who spoke. She sounded... Austrian, perhaps? Fem-Spy swivelled her eyes to the shorter woman and promptly had her breath taken away. The Medic was beautiful, for lack of a better word. She stood up straight with perfect posture. Her pale skin seemed to glow under the dim light in the tunnel. Her dark hair was secured at the base of her neck in a tight bun and her feline-like eyes were dark and penetrating. "Heavy, you double back to ze rest of ze team und inform zem ve vill attack soon. I vill stay vith Demo."

Fem-Heavy nodded and turned back through the tunnel. Fem-Spy took this as a brilliant spot of luck on her part. Fem-Medic watched her companion go before she turned toward Fem-Spy. It took a moment for the French woman to notice Fem-Medic was now holding her bonesaw. Fem-Medic jumped toward Fem-Spy with startling speed, her bonesaw swinging down. Fem-Spy tried to step back, startled, but found her way blocked by a tunnel wall.

There was a sickening squelch as the saw made contact with Fem-Spy's upper right arm. Fem-Spy grimaced at the pain as her disguised vanished and her mask slipped and fell to the ground. Fem-Medic forced her up against the wall.

"Nice try little _fraulein_. I was ze one who instructed ze BLUs to stay on point A." She sharply moved the bonesaw back and forth, cutting through the other woman's flesh. Fem-Spy hissed in pain. "It is interesting to see a female from ze ozzah team. How long is your contract? Almost ovah, I imagine," She grabbed Fem-Spy's left wrist with her free hand, "You haven't been avoiding us BLUs, have you?" Fem-Spy looked at the woman with panic-stricken eyes. Is this what the BLU Scout had meant when he attacked her? That the BLU females were 'crazy'? This Medic was certainly scaring the Hell out of her.

Fem-Medic gave her a sinister smile and wrenched the bonesaw on more time. Fem-Spy nearly shrieked when she felt the saw dig into her humerus. She tried to violently struggle out of Fem-Medic's grip to no avail. Fem-Medic, keeping her grip steady, inclined her head to Fem-Spy's bleeding arm. Fem-Spy watched with horrid fascination. It looked like Fem-Medic was smelling her wound. Fem-Medic then ripped the bonesaw out of Fem-Spy's flesh. Fem-Spy was about to move to throw the woman off, before she did something completely unexpected. Fem-Medic brought her head down and wrapped her mouth around Fem-Spy's bleeding arm. Fem-Spy cried out in shock. It wasn't a bite. Fem-Medic seemed to be sucking on the gash in her flesh. Fem-Spy felt the German woman's tongue moving under her skin.

'_Fuck this,_' Thought Fem-Spy. Keeping her weight on the wall, she swung her leg to kick Fem-Medic in the stomach. Fem-Medic jerked backwards, pulling herself away and loosening her grip on Fem-Spy's left wrist. Fem-Spy yanked her hand away and delivered a square punch to Fem-Medic's face. Fem-Medic fell away from her, gasping and sputtering. Fem-Spy reached awkwardly into her jacket with her left hand, searching for her gun. She found it and drew it out, pointing it at Fem-Medic.

Fem-Medic was sitting on her knees, clutching her stomach, "Vell, I see you have earned your place here," She said weakly, "You are a fighter. Feisty," She smirked, "Blood of ze tough ones is alvays most satisfying."

Fem-Spy tried to mask her disgust as Fem-Medic licked the blood off her lips. The BLU Scout was right. Fem-Spy had no idea how selections for the teams were conducted, but she was happy to not be on this insane bitch's team.

"Eef you love blood so much, amuse yourself with your own." Fem-Spy pointed the Ambassador at Fem-Medic's abdominals and fired.

The shot in the tunnel was louder than she expected. Fem-Medic's scream was louder still. She grunted from the shock of the Ambassador's recoil. The force on Fem-Spy's weaker left arm made her almost drop the gun as her elbow nearly collapsed on itself. She dropped her arm uselessly to her side, still gripping the gun, hoping she wouldn't have to fire again and knowing she wouldn't be able to. She looked up to see Fem-Medic on her back and pressed her gloved hands to her bleeding midsection, her own blood now staining the ground. Fem-Spy stopped for a moment. Why had she done that? Why had she shot her in the stomach, not the head or heart? There was a chance Fem-Medic could be saved, if none of her vital organs had been severely damaged. There would certainly be more pain. She would stay alive longer, but a hole in her stomach would defiantly hurt more.

Fem-Spy was knocked out of her abstraction when a rocket hit the ground behind her. The blast knocked her off her feet. She caught herself on her left arm, careful of where she placed her weight but still gasping at the pain. If Fem-Spy had learned one thing in her three months here, it was if you were being shot at you haul ass and don't look back.

She began to run, but couldn't help to take a second to glance back at Fem-Medic. The woman's breathing was laboured, the blood still flowing from the ragged wound. She rolled her head to look at Fem-Spy. A devilish grin seemed to stretch across the Fem-Medics face, her own blood beginning to drip from her mouth. Fem-Spy felt nauseous. Without looking back again, she sprinted out of the tunnel to point B. She needed to inform her team about the incoming attack.

* * *

_Blood fetishes are creepy. Ceasefire sounds relaxing, though._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments rock my world!_


	11. Ceasefire and a Celebration

_Hey ya'll, guess whose back? Okay, so it wasn't THAT long ago I updated. I'm pretty much done with school, so I think I'll have more time to write. Joy!_

_IHaveSpyCrabs: Thank you very much! You and Princess of Pyromania (winkwink) are both awesome! While I'm glad this story is working for you guys, publishing is a big leap. I don't think I've got the writing where-with-all to be seriously published. Any crits or improvement help me get closer to that level of writing though! ;)_

_krazy kiki: Haha, no not quite. That would be a cool update for the Ubersaw though..._

_general-tommy: I hope the premise of the story isn't all you find interesting. Thank you for all of your reviews, they truly make a difference. Recoil, check. Seemingly insane BLU, check (while I do admit, she may not seem SUPER crazy to those familiar with the game. She'll be back though). Kudo to clever Medic you, btw. I acatually remember once I uber'd an enemy Spy, disguised as a Demo. Not my finest moment. Blautsauger can fight a Heavy? Eep, I'll have to test that one out._

_oh well: 37th decimal place of Pi? Hot damn, I'm praying to Gods you remember. Thank you for the kind words, and if there are cons, please don't hesitate to point them out. I want to make this the most enjoyable fanfiction I can! I acatually did play a few rounds of TF2 before I updated this. Sadly, no Gravel Pit._

_Well, here we go._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

"Really?" Medic raised an eyebrow to Fem-Spy.

"_Non_, I'm making eet up," Fem-Spy winced as the Medigun that had been focused on her left arm was turned off. Firing the Ambassador with her left arm had done a number on her elbow. Medic said she had fractured it. Then there was the matter of explain the rather messy gash on her right arm. "I swear she _bit_ me!"

"I'm sure." Medic fastened the bandage on her right arm and ushered her off the cot she had been occupying. The day was over. The post battle meeting was set to start soon and the Medics were making sure everyone was in a respectable state of health before it began.

Medic hadn't said anything to Fem-Spy about his creepy talk at the beginning of the day. Fem-Spy hadn't seen Franz or Fem-Scout all day and even if she did, she didn't think she would tell Medic about them.

Fem-Spy quickly left the infirmary without another word to Medic. He didn't seem to notice. She headed to her room to get another jacket. Hers was ripped where she had been cut by Fem-Medic. Fem-Spy shivered. She was still shaken by her run-in with the woman. No wonder people thought the BLU females were insane. She tried to put it out of her mind. She needed to get a new jacket. You might as well look good when you're getting hacked to death.

Soon enough, everyone was in the meeting room. The consensus was that the RED's had done well, but no one was really sure. Fem-Spy tried to see if everyone she knew was accounted for.

One of the Soldiers made his way to the front of the room.

"Alright MAGGOTS," He yelled, "Today is a GOOD DAY. I am HAPPY to say that we have DOMINATED those BLU SCUM! We have WON the day with a SCORE of 26 TO 5!"

The room buzzed excitedly. A bit more was said about the battles themselves and strategies (or rather what worked and what didn't). After Soldier, the head Medic took the stage. This was the worst part of the meeting, in Fem-Spy's opinion. She braced herself for the casualties.

"Vell, I am pleased to announce," said Medic, a smile twitching at his face, "Ve had no casualties today." The room was completely silent. "At all."

It took a moment for this to sink in. Then the room erupted into cheers. Everyone on the RED team had survived to see the ceasefire. It almost never happened that no one died in battle. Fem-Spy laughed and clapped her hands. She certainly felt like celebrating now.

After a few moments Fem-Demo jumped to the front of the room, nearly knocking over the Medic. "A'right lads!" She yelled, "Everyone tae th' rec room! We've got booze!"

The cheering got louder. Fem-Spy felt herself getting swept along with the crowd. This was going to be a long night, and hopefully a good one.

It took about ten minutes for the party to get into full swing. Fem-Spy sat at a corner table by herself, with a glass of what could be scotch. She watched her teammates with a smile on her face.

Fem-Demo was sitting in a circle on the floor with some other men, playing some sort of drinking game. Engie was with her. Sniper and Pyro were talking at another table on which the radio rested. It was playing something that sounded like The Beatles, or maybe Bobby Goldsboro. She saw Fem-Scout and Franz behind the couch, passing a bottle back and forth between them. At seeing the pair, Fem-Spy glanced around, trying to find the head Medic. He was across the room, playing pool with some other Engies and Heavies.

Fem-Spy sighed. She saw someone moving toward her table out of the corner of her eye. She turned to see Spy holding an unmarked bottle and a shot glass.

"Is zhis seat taken?" He motioned to the chair opposite Fem-Spy. She shook her head. Spy pulled out the chair and sat himself down. He popped the cork of the bottle and poured its contents into the small glass in from of him.

"Zee strongest I could get from zee Demos," He commented after he saw Fem-Spy staring, "I 'ave not gotten drunk in a while, and I feel zhis is a good excuse."

Fem-Spy smiled slightly, "Zhat's disgusting."

Spy shrugged, a grin climbing up his face, "I take it you do not partake in zee joy of drinking very often."

"I suppose not," Fem-Spy blushed slightly. She tried to change to subject, "'Ave you made any 'eadway with finding zee team's files?"

Spy swished his drink round, "_Oui_. I believe I 'ave."

Fem-Spy waited but Spy said nothing more about the files. He instead downed his drink with a flourish. After he swallowed, he threw his head forward and gasped.

Fem-Spy smirked, "Zhat bad?"

Spy sighed and settled back in his chair, "On zee contrary, you'd be surprised," He pointed at the bottle, "'Elp yourself."

"Oh no," Said Fem-Spy, "I wouldn't dare."

Spy placed his elbow on the table and his head in his hand, "Can't 'old your drink?"

"As well as any of you, I'm sure," she lied. Fem-Spy had never been much of a drinker. A glass of wine at dinner or champagne at a party was as far as she got. But she didn't want Spy to know that. "I just don't see zee need to flaunt my skill at tossing alcohol down my throat."

Spy smirked at her. He refilled the shot glass and slid it across the table toward her, "Prove eet."

Fem-Spy looked uncertainly at the glass. She picked it up and turned it around in her hand. The mahogany liquid seemed innocent enough. She glanced at Spy, who was still staring at her.

She raised the glass tentatively, "Cheers." And she drank.

The liquid burned her throat as it passed her throat. Fem-Spy blinked hard and coughed. After a few moments, her head felt uncomfortably stuffy and heavy. This stuff, whatever it was, worked fast. She looked at Spy who seemed to be stifling laughter.

"Shut up," muttered Fem-Spy, still blinking.

"Eet's just amusing to see someone take a strong drink for zee first time," he poured another glass for himself and downed it with a smirk.

Fem-Spy rolled her eyes and grabbed the bottle from him. Spy handed her the glass. She looked at him and took it. She found herself pouring another drink.

"Did you 'ave a good day?" asked Spy, still watching her.

"I ran into zee BLU female Medic. She was...Interesting," Fem-Spy brought the glass to her lips and swallowed the foul drink. She didn't feel it as much this time.

"Ah, I zhink I 'ave seen 'er," Spy took back the bottle, "She is quite a fine lady, _non_?"

Fem-Spy scoffed, "She is a psychopath. She bit me, you know."

Spy put away a third drink and hiccupped, "When I imagine zhat 'appening, it becomes something sexual," His smile stretched. Fem-Spy saw his face had a red flush to it. She could only imagine what she looked like.

"You would zhink zhat, you pervert," She fumbled for the bottle, "_Non_, she is crazy. I zhink I might've killed 'er, zhough."

Spy laughed. Fem-Spy tilted the bottle and poured her third drink, the alcohol spilling over the sides of the glass. She giggled a little to herself and swallowed. She barely tasted it. Her body felt numb, but pleasantly so.

She handed the bottle back to Spy, "You know what I zhink?" She began.

"I always wonder you zhink," Spy grinned and clumsily grabbed the neck of the bottle.

"I zhink zhat Spies wear masks because," She leaned toward Spy and whispered, "Zhey are so ugly to begin with!"

Spy pretended to look horrified, "_Ma cheri_, I will 'ave you know I am quite a handsome man. And I am sure you are a sexy woman yourself."

"I can't argue zhere," Fem-Spy slurred.

Spy was about to drink his forth glass, until Fem-Spy snatched the glass out of his hand and downed it herself. Spy looked genuinely surprised for a moment. Then he grabbed the bottle itself and brought it to his lips. He swallowed and slammed the bottle on the table. He let out a long, deep breath. Spy glanced at Fem-Spy and grinned like the devil. He handed her the bottle. She took it without a thought.

At this point her vision began to get blurry...

* * *

_Remeber kids, don't drink and drive._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make me write faster! Really, they do!_


	12. The Aftermath

_Hey all! You'd think summer would give me more time to write. I guess not. I sped through editing to get this out, so please tell me if there are any mistakes._

_CubieChellPandaxD: Thank you! I'm glad you like my Fem-Spy, she needs all the help she can get!_

_general-tommy: Now, now, don't get ahead of me. The files have their time and place and we will get there soon enough. :) The last chapter was kind of a transition-type-chapter. It all makes sense in my mind, getting it down on paper (so to speak) is the hard part. Yeah, stuff happens at parties man. Bad stuff. Oh well, Fem-Spy has no one to blame but herself. Also, high five for reviewing through a dead keyboard! I commened you sir!_

_Loveinthemask: Thanks! I'm going as fast as I can! :3_

_Rainha Do Mangalho: Thank you for the fantastic review! It's great to know people like this story and even better to know what about it they like. Stuff is going down after the party, so keep a watch! btw, one of my best friends is Portugese. You people are pretty damn cool. (And thanks for the hug! 3)_

_mindrot: No review is to long or useless. I love them all! I'm glad Fem-Spy is developing as a character, it's been my goal since the beginning._

_Well, here we go again. Hold on tight!_

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

The first person on the RED team who woke on Friday morning did so at precisely 5:23 AM. He was one of the few that didn't drink himself to excess, though he still drank plenty. He lifted his crusty eyelids and groaned slightly. He brought his hand to his face. It took him a moment to realise he couldn't reach his head. Had he fallen asleep with his mask on? Yes, he had. He slowly sat up and looked around. He had somehow ended up behind the couch, using a blue jacket as a blanket. He saw a few team members lying on the ground and some slumped over in chairs. Bottles were strewn across the floor and one of the overhead lights had been broken, the surviving lights casting the room in a dim glow. He let a sigh escape his lips and struggled to stand up, ignoring the makeshift blanket. One of the Spies was going to be angry, but they weren't going to blame him for it. His suit gave rubbery squeaks as he pulled himself to his feet. He carefully made his way to the door, clutching his head as the light from the hallway hit his eyes, even through the tinted lens of his mask. What he needed now was a glass of water and some pills from his little pink bag.

The second person to wake up did so at 5:48 AM. He coughed as he jerked awake in the chair he had previously passed out in. He rubbed his eyes and found he was missing his sunglasses. He tried to pull back a memory of last night. Where did his glasses go? He took a quick peek under the table. There they were. He picked them up to find one of the lenses was cracked. Not the best start to the day, he thought. He tried to place the glasses on top of his hat until he realized he wasn't wearing it. Well, he wasn't going to look for it now. He eased himself out of his chair and surveyed the room. His eyes lingered on the couch and it occupants and then travelled to the pool table. He smiled to himself. Someone was going to have an awkward morning. As much as he wanted to see it, a pot of coffee was calling his name and he desperately needed it.

* * *

_The backdoor to the white, two story house opened without a sound. The tall woman in a small red dress with a torn hem made her way inside, clutching her high-heeled shoes in one hand and a small purse in the other. She peeked around the kitchen she had entered. In was empty and dark. The counter lining the right hand side of the kitchen gave a soft shine in the moonlight. The woman closed the door carefully and crept to the open doorway on the far wall, leading to the living room. There was no one in there either. The house was black and quiet._

_With a sigh, the woman retreaded to the kitchen and tossed her shoes and purse on the table opposite to the door. She fetched herself a glass of water and slumped down in one of the chairs. She just sat there for a moment, unmoving. Then she raised the glass of water to her lips and took a sip. It felt glorious on her parched tongue. She rubbed her eyes. When she placed the glass down, she noticed the make-up staining her palms. Her hair was probably flat and messy too. Oh well, no one would see her now and she had go to bed anyway._

_A voice made her jump._

"_Ann?" Said the voice. It had come from behind her. The woman whipped around to see a middle-aged woman wearing an emerald green night robe standing in the doorway to the living room. The middle-aged woman had her light coloured hair in an array of curlers and her arms crossed. Her small blue eyes had large circles underneath them._

"_Zhat's not my name," the young woman ground her teeth. She could feel a headache coming on, and the last thing she wanted was to talk to anyone._

_The middle-aged women didn't move. "Ann, it's three in the morning. Where have you been?" _

"_I was out."_

"_Where?"_

"_Does it matter?"_

"_Yes, if you're not back until the sun comes up. I don't want you doing anything... disreputable."_

_The young woman glared. "When do you care about my work?"_

"_Work?" The middle-aged woman looked horrified. "What have you been doing? Ann, you have two degrees from one of the top schools in the world and you can't find a legitimate job?"_

_The young woman turned away from the living room door. "No one will 'ire me because I'm a woman. God forbid I do something other zhen get coffee and make photocopies!" She threw her arms up in exasperation. _

"_Don't blame this on other people," the middle-aged woman still hadn't moved from the doorway. Her voice sounded strained. "I want you to stop going out."_

_The young woman whipped around again. "At all?"_

"_Yes."_

"_But we need zee money! You said it yourself a few days ago. One income can't support zhis family!"_

_The middle-aged woman wrinkled her nose. "I would hardly call that income," she said, pointing to the purse on the kitchen table._

_The young woman felt anger flare up inside of her like a matchstick. How should it matter how she makes money? They needed it, now more than ever. "You can't keep me in zhis 'ouse. I'm not a rowdy teenager you can control by grounding. I can do whatever I want."_

"_For saying you're not a teenager, you're sure acting like one," the middle-aged woman pressed her lips to a thin line, "Listen Ann-"_

"_ZHAT'S NOT MY NAME!" The young woman roared with sudden force, pushing herself out of the chair. "MY NAME IS ROXANNE! I am not your little American girl! I am French! My parents were French! Do not dumb me down to your 'orrible, ignorant cultural level, even if just by my name!"_

_There was a hard silence. The middle-aged woman stood, twisting the sleeve of her night rode in her hand. Her mouth was opening and closing but no words were coming out. She was about to say something when another, smaller voice came from the living room._

"_Mum?" The middle-aged woman turned. It was a small boy, maybe five years old. He had a plump face and scruffy, sandy hair. He was wearing blue pyjamas and rubbing his eyes._

_The middle-aged woman picked the boy up and cradled him in her arms. "You've woken Peter," she looked back at the young woman. Her face was now stern, her eyes serious. "We'll talk about this tomorrow. Now, if you want to go out, I'm not going to stop you. But I want you in your bed when I wake up, or there'll be some serious repercussions," the middle-aged woman's face sunk, as if suddenly exhausted. Her eyes were tired, the creases in her face more visible. It was as if all the face creams and skin treatments she had administered had fallen off, her mask gone. "I'm... I'm disappointed in you, Roxanne." _

_Without another word, she left. The young woman heard the stairs creak and the pair went back to their bedrooms. She waited until she couldn't hear any more sounds. She began pacing the kitchen, growing more and more frustrated, but for the love of God she couldn't say why._

_She kicked one of the kitchen chairs, earning nothing but sharp pain in her toe. She hissed and clutched her throbbing appendage, crouching in the moonlit kitchen. Her eyes stung with sudden moisture. She didn't want things to be like this. She didn't WANT to be coming home so early in the morning, she didn't WANT to have to rely on her body to make a decent wage. And she certainly didn't want to be fighting with the only family she had in the world._

"Merde,_" She muttered to herself as she wept on the kitchen floor._

* * *

Fem-Spy stirred in her warm bed, keeping her eyes closed to relish the sleepy feeling. She had a dream, but it was slipping away from her fast. She had no inclination to chase after it, however. She vaguely remembered last night's party and was in no mood to get up anytime soon. She reached for her blanket to cover more of herself and couldn't find it. She found this curious, but not enough so to get her up.

It was then she realized her bed was moving.

It wasn't an obvious motion. Just a slow up and down movement, ever so subtly, almost as if it were breathing.

'_My bed is breathing,'_ Fem-Spy's thoughts were slowly piecing themselves together. Once she gathered that a breathing bed was indeed a strange thing, she decided to open her eyes and investigate. She lifted her slightly hung-over eyelids, and immediately sobered up.

She was staring at Spy. He was inches from her face and sound asleep. Fem-Spy tried to stay silent, her face flushing crimson at their proximity. She felt his soft breath on her skin. His body smelled like alcohol, cigarettes and expensive cologne. Something about the smell made her want to go back to sleep. The more rational part of her brain decided otherwise.

She realized she was lying on top of Spy, or more to the point, straddling him with her face pressed to his chest. They were both on the couch in the rec room, in the middle of the aftermath of the RED's ceasefire party. Spy was still as the dead (save for his breathing), an empty bottle in his left hand hanging over the couch. His right hand was on Fem-Spy's lower back. Once she found her arms, she carefully pushed herself up into a sitting position (still on top of Spy) and surveyed the room.

It was a mess. The RED's were lying on the floor, under tables, on the pool table, like a child's discarded jacks. There was even less light than usual, the door to the hallway providing a fluorescent glow. There was almost no sound, except for the occasional grunting and shuffling of the other REDs and the stray bits of music drifting in the rec room from somewhere else in the base. As her eyes travelled the room, surveying the damage, she saw Fem-Scout's body huddled with someone else underneath the pool table. The other body was wearing a Medic's coat. With quick deduction, Fem-Spy realized it was Franz. She stared at the pair, not sure whether to be surprised or amused. She would've kept on staring, until Spy grunted underneath her and she remembered her predicament.

Fem-Spy sat with sudden fear. What if there was someone already up? Had anyone seen them? If anyone had seen, it would embarrass Fem-Spy to no end. She looked back down at Spy, swallowing slowly. Her throat felt dry as a desert. She slowly pushed herself up, off of Spy, moving her limbs with the control of a professional gymnast. She found the floor with her right foot and swung her other leg over Spy, gripping the back of the couch for support. Once she was out of that predicament, she scampered out of the room. Fem-Spy raced down the hallways of the RED base, making turn after turn, until she reached her own room. She jumped inside and slammed the door, locking it with a click. She dropped onto the floor, with her back against the door, trying to conjure up memories of last night.

She remembered drinking with Spy. Then they had both joined the group on the floor, playing drinking games. She recalled one game involving an episode of _Star Trek_ on the television, but not much else. With a sudden fear, she checked her clothing. She had her shoes, socks, shorts, underwear and mask (thank God). She was missing her jacket and gloves. She pulled at her shirt, just to make sure it was still there, when she noticed something.

'_Where's my bra?'_ the thought streaked through her head. It was gone. She searched her persons frantically, just to make sure but it was nowhere to be found. Fem-Spy slumped against the door. She had no idea what to think except that maybe, just _maybe_, she had made something stupid last night.

Fem-Spy needed to talk to someone, if only to find out what happened last night. She felt unusually scared and worried. Who could she talk to? Who would remember anything from last night? No one was awake, and who was she even open enough with?

'_Fem-Demo,_' she decided. The Scottish woman had been a sort of idol for Fem-Spy during her time here. She had always seemed to positive and sure of herself, and Fem-Spy admired that. Plus, she was always social, easy to talk to and held her drink longer than most. She probably coped with hangovers better, too.

Fem-Spy stood up shakily. She unlocked the door, and made her way down the hallway, still wary of REDs slowly waking up and going through their morning routines. She didn't see anyone. Eventually she got to Fem-Demo's door. She reached out and rapped three times. There was no sound for a moment, then shuffling and the clanking of a lock. The door opened a jar. Fem-Demo appeared in all her black Scottish glory. She was wearing her cap with her bushy hair spilling down her back, a black bra and what looked like a kilt. She was leaning on the door frame and held a chubby, lit cigar. Fem-Spy's eyes widened. She blushed and looked away.

"Demo," she said, "I'm sorry. I-I wanted to speak with you, if you 'ave a moment."

Fem-Demo glanced backward into her room, a small smile plastered on her face. "Well lassie, this may not be th' best time," she looked back a Fem-Spy. "But if yer quick, why not?"

"Well, eet's about last night," Fem-Spy began.

She turned back to Fem-Demo and nearly jumped. There was an arm wrapping around the woman's waist. Fem-Demo squealed as the hand reached her hip.

"Who's there hun?" Fem-Spy physically felt her jaw drop. It was Engineer. He had his goggles over his eyes, but his helmet was missing and he had no shirt on. Fem-Spy tried to say something, but for some reason she couldn't get her mouth to form any coherent words.

"Not now, ya silly lad," Fem-Demo grabbed Engie's hand and gave it a small squeeze, "People are gonta see us."

"I don't care," Engie grinned. He noticed Fem-Spy. "No offence Spah. But please don't tell nobody."

Fem-Spy hadn't moved a muscle through the whole exchange, "_Non_. I-I'm sorry. I'll just go."

Fem-Spy spun around and dashed down the hall. Her heard Fem-Demo call her name but she didn't look back. She ran down the hallway, not knowing where she was going.

She kept running aimlessly until she eventually ran into someone. She crashed into the person with substantial force and heard them release a short stream of curses. She looked up to see Sniper. He was holding a mug with coffee sloshing over the edge onto his un-gloved hand and frown on his face.

"Ah, Spoih," his mouth pulled upwards, "Didn't think ya would wake up for a while. I haven't seen anyone else this mornin'."

"Oh," Fem-Spy groped for words, "I'm sorry, I should 'ave looked where I was going.

"No worries," Sniper shook his head lightly, "I'm sure we're all gonna be a little out of it this mornin'."

Fem-Spy nodded slowly. Maybe she could talk to Sniper. "Did you just get up?"

"Nah, I picked myself up around... I dunno, quarter t' six, maybe?"

"Did you see me, uh, earlier? When you woke up?"

Sniper was quiet for a moment. "Nah, I crashed out in m' room," He looked over Fem-Spy's shoulder, as if someone was listening in on their conversation, "Why'd ya ask?"

"Oh, no reason," Fem-Spy swallowed. Her throat was still dry.

Sniper sipped his coffee, looking over the edge of his mug at Fem-Spy. "Are Spoihs supposed t' be good liars?" He asked.

"What?" Asked Fem-Spy, wondering whether to be offended by this comment.

"Yer terrible at lyin'. Why does it matter if I saw ya?" Sniper lowered his mug.

"Eet's nothing. I just..." Fem-Spy looked at her feet. Her chest suddenly felt tight, her eyes stung with an unfamiliar heat. "I'm just not feeling so well." Fem-Spy sucked in a breath of air, suddenly amazed by the effort she had to use to get the oxygen into her lungs.

She wasn't crying. Fem-Spy blinked, still gasping and heaving. She was always told that crying was a sign of weakness and having others see you cry would give the worst impression of yourself. She rubbed her eyes, her fingers working under her balaclava, as if trying get rid the very idea of crying. She was frustrated and hung-over, that was all. It was then she felt the arm on her shoulder. It was Sniper, his large hand gingerly squeezing.

"It's all roight luv," Sniper carefully looked Fem-Spy in the eyes, staying even with her gaze, making her feel safe, like he did so many weeks ago when he saved her from the BLU Scout.

"I'm sorry," Fem-Spy whispered without looking at Sniper.

"S'alright," He smiled at Fem-Spy, "Let's get ya some pick me up for th' day." Fem-Spy looked at him quizzically.

"Coffee."

"Ah, of course."

Sniper led Fem-Spy down the hall, the comforting hand still on her shoulder. Fem-Spy sighed. The day was looking up.

* * *

Back in the rec room it was 6:29 AM, and the RED on the couch was stirring. He lifted his left hand to rub his aching temple. He felt a bottle fall from his hand as he raised it, the clink of the glass on the floor as loud as a scream. He grit his teeth. This was going to be a long, hangover-filled day, he just knew it. He glanced around himself. His body felt cold, as if someone had stolen a blanket from him when he was sleeping. He grabbed the top of the couch and pulled himself into a sitting position. As he did, there was an unfamiliar scratching on his right thigh, under the material of his pants. He looked at his leg to see a lump, as if there was a handkerchief stuck in his trousers. He sighed in annoyance and reached to pull it out. No doubt last night someone thought shoving random cloth into people's _very_ personal space was funny. When he brought out his hand, however, it was not a handkerchief. Instead in his fist was a navy blue bra.

He starred at it for a moment in shock.

His first thought was, '_How did someone get a bra?'_ The answer was painfully obvious; female teammates. The second question was whose bra was it? The RED glanced over the piece of lingerie in his grip. The lady Demo was quite obviously too voluptuous for a garment of this size, and the young Scout had the breasts of a 14-year old. That left...

The man dismissed the thought. There was no way it belonged to her, a woman of such etiquette and professionalism. At least, he didn't think so. As the man left the rec room (with the bra still in hand) he made a mental note to pass on the undergarment to the female Demo. The man told himself she would sort out this mess. In truth he didn't want to be the one to return it's to its owner, already knowing who it was. He didn't want to embarrass her.

* * *

_Fun stuff. When at a party, KEEP YOUR CLOTHES TO YOURSELF!_

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments give me reason to live! (Or go on the internet at least)._


	13. Break's Over

_Guess who's back? Me, sadly enough. And I come bearing a new chapter! Joy!_

_CubieChellPandaxD: Yeah, I hoped the beginning wouldn't be TOO confusing. Oh well. :/ The flash back won't be, 'explained' per se. Well okay, it kind of will. I hope the readers will be able to piece it together before that though._

_general-tommy: Thanks for the concrit, once again. Yes, I suppose at that point Fem-Spy is in a rebellious stage or something. I'm glad the rest of it came off well anyway. :)_

_Windsofdreams: Indeed. He'd probably have an underwear buring party in the middle of the desert, knowing Solly like we do._

_some1udontno: Oh my dear, you wish. ;)_

_Rainha Do Mangalho: I am so sorry in advance if you get in trouble! Yeah, Fem-Demo likes sweet boys. I don't blame her. ;) Pyro woke up first and i must say, your under-the-mask-for Pyro is quite good. I'm personally voting for him to be Asian though. Every RED having blue undies? What a thought! Neutral colours are boring anyway. Don't worry about constant reviews! As long as you can read this (and not get in trouble) is good by me. :) PS. I'm not kicking over any rocks any time soon._

_Okay, let's kick this into high gear! UP, UP AND AWAY!_

_EDIT: I didn't mention it, but this chapter is going to be a bit darker then the rest. I'm don't know if I'm moving the story in that direction yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if I did. _

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

Fem-Spy didn't see Spy again until Sunday.

She wasn't _trying_ to avoid him. After the fiasco of a party that was had, and Fem-Spy had sufficiently calmed down with the help of Sniper, she had retreated to her room with her copy of '_Daughter of Silence'_ and a cup of tea. Engie was right. Reading was a small pleasure that the mercenaries could still shamelessly partake in. Fem-Spy had skipped lunch completely and taken the book to dinner, ignoring the conversation around her. She did watch Engie and Fem-Demo, though. Since she had caught the two in Fem-Demo's bedroom, she had kept a close watch on them. She was looking for things that might give away their relationship, which they seemed eager to keep hidden. There was nothing obvious. His hand lingering upon hers, she staring a little too long and the open chivalry of saving each other seats. It seemed obvious, but only if you knew and Fem-Spy was the only other that did.

Spy didn't come to dinner on the first night of the ceasefire. Sniper was there, and Pyro. Sniper sat next to Fem-Spy and tried to engage her in the conversation. She silently appreciated the effort, but kept to herself. No one noticed, as reorienting themselves to the lack of fighting took more effort for some, especially after the party.

The whole day crept along with a snail's pace. With the amount of hangovers and semi-literal destruction in the rec room, no one was motivated to do anything. By dinner most of the team seemed to be functioning normally. Saturday was low-key as well. Fem-Spy spent it mostly reading and listening to what was left of the radio in the rec room.

On Sunday she began wondering why in the Hell the team needed a three day ceasefire. It was just after lunch and Fem-Spy was wandering the base, looking for something to do. She sauntered around a corner, heading for the kitchen when she saw her Pyro friend standing at the end of the hallway. Pyro pointed at her and said something muffed before scampering towards her.

"Hhhhrrvv rrrwww sssnn Skkkkttt?" The muffled voice tumbled through that air.

"'Ave I seen Scout?" Fem-Spy repeated, "Zee female Scout?"

Pyro's head nodded with abandon, "Sshhh hzzz mrr bkkk. Tttss Hhch Prrr Lrrvcrrftt," the gas mask seemed to grin.

Fem-Spy's mouth twitched. "Well, I 'ave not seen 'er. She must be somewhere around zee base," she waved her hand lazily. Surely the woman was just sleeping, eating or bothering the other classes.

"Rrrvv llkkddd frrr hrrr arrr ovvvvrr," Pyro's head tilted downward, "Kkknn rrrwww hlllp mrrr lllkkk?" Pyro's hand shot forward. Fem-Spy saw he was holding a ripped scrap of paper that seemed to be stained with coffee or something of the sort. On it, written in nearly illegible writing with a black pen were the words _Kitchen, TV Room, Mess Hall, Room, Infirmary,_ and _Hallways_. _Kitchen, Mess Hall_ and _TV Room_ were crossed out.

Fem-Spy sighed. She had nothing better to do. Hell, this would give her something more interesting then reading for the first time in three days.

"Alright," She took the paper and pocketed it, "Where should we look?"

"Rrlll lllkkk rrnn thhhh hlllllwwwwss," Pyro gave a thumbs up before turning and dashing off. Fem-Spy stood awkwardly for a moment before she shook her head and made her way to Fem-Scout's room. All the Pyros, this one included, were so strange. Fem-Spy personally felt queasy around Pyros, as they were the Spy's natural enemy. An open stream of fire was a danger of being found out, or even worse, killed. Still, this Pyro wasn't hostile (at least off the field) and Fem-Scout was a friend to both of them.

As Fem-Spy walked to Fem-Scout's room, she mused about calling the young woman her friend. She had focused so much on distancing herself from others, not the impossible idea of relationships. Yet, here she was, calling people whose names she didn't even know friends.

'_The more you try and get away from something, the harder it comes back and hits you,'_ thought Fem-Spy as she knocked on Fem-Scout's door. There was no answer. "Scout?" She called softly as she pushed on the door. It was unlocked. The wooden slab gave way to a mess of clothing, books and equipment. Red shirts and underwear were draped of every available surface. Books, mostly comics were piled haphazardly in the left side of the room, while a few well thumbed copies sat on the night stand. Against the far wall, the unmade bed sat holding Fem-Scout's Scattergun, baseball bat and cap. No sign of Fem-Scout. Fem-Spy drew out the paper Pyro had given her. She mentally crossed off '_Room_'. Pyro was probably still searching the hallways, so that left the Infirmary. She began to make her way there.

Two hallways later she met Engineer.

"Heya Spah," his gloved hand gave a small wave, "How's it goin'?"

"Engineer, 'ave you seen Scout?" Fem-Spy asked.

"The little lady? I saw her run that-a-way none too long ago," He pointed (surprise, surprise) in the direction of the infirmary.

"_Merci_ Engineer," Fem-Spy nodded her head and continued past him.

"Ya might wanna talk t' her," Engineer's voice was losing its volume behind her, "She looked mighty upset."

Fem-Spy pondered his words as she moved swiftly through the red painted halls. Before she turned the last corner, she heard a terrific crash and yell from the direction she was heading. With growing alarm Fem-Spy ran to toward the Infirmary and pushed the doors open with trepidation. A wild sight lay in front of her eyes.

The first thing she saw was Fem-Scout. She was straddling someone on the ground and swinging her fists into their face, with a violent, rhythmic motion. The person underneath Fem-Scout she identified as the head Medic. His glasses were askew and his face was smothered in blood. He held up his hands in an attempt to stop Fem-Scot's blows, while cursing frantically in German. Behind the pair was a gurney, knocked on its side and a figure crouching behind it. It was Franz, clutching his face for an ailment Fem-Spy couldn't see. She directed her attention to the wild Scout.

"Scout!" She yelled, "_Arrêt_!"

Fem-Scout paused in her frenzy to look up at the door. Her eyes were wide and as red as her shirt. He mouth hung open in a strange, unfocussed manner. Medic saw his chance. He thrust his body weight up toward Fem-Scout, knocking her off balance. Her arms wind milled franticly to try and stay upright. Medic stretched his hand toward Fem-Scout's head and grabbed a fistful of her hair. Fem-Scout screamed as Medic violently yanked her head down, planting her face into the clinical white tiled floor. The sound of Fem-Scout's head making contact with the ground was sickening. She stopped moving abruptly.

Medic pushed the rest of Fem-Scout's body off himself and stood shakily. He looked absentmindedly at Fem-Spy.

"_Danke_ Spy," he said. His voice sounded hoarse, "I vas in great trouble."

"Trouble?" Fem-Spy rushed to Fem-Scout and kneeled checked her pulse. She was still breathing, thank God. "You nearly killed 'er! What constituted zhis behaviour?"

"I thought it vas quite obvious," Medic looked down at Fem-Spy. She could see the damage done to his face more clearly now. His nose stuck at an awkward angle and looked lumpy. The skin above his right eyebrow had split and blood was slinking down the side of his face. A darkening eye and puffed up lip did nothing to help his appearance. His entire face was cross crossed by dribbling lines of blood. "Ze Scout vas attacking me. Und I did not do nearly enough to kill her. For a better example of zat, please, look at my face."

The bit of faux humour did nothing to sway Fem-Spy. She stood to face him at her full height. He was still taller than her. "Why was she attacking you?"

"A misunderstanding."

"Bullshit."

"She misunderstood somezing. Zere iz no more explanation zen-"

"He was hittin' him," The voice weakly drifted up from the floor. Fem-Scout was beginning to come around. Fem-Spy bent back down to roll the girl onto her back and support her head. "He was hittin' Franz, he was. I couldn't let 'im. I..." Fem-Scout trailed off, attempting to stay conscious.

Fem-Spy cast an evil look toward Medic. "What did you do?"

"Nozing," he stated, bending down to reach for his glasses. He put them on, and then walked gingerly (Fem-Spy notice a slight limp in his left leg) to Franz who was still behind the toppled gurney. He grabbed to boy's arm and yanked him to his feet. Franz's hand fell away from his face to reveal a darkening bruise high on his right cheek. Fem-Spy's eyes grew wide.

"Zere vas an accident," Medic stated matter-of-factly, "Und I believe ze young Scout misunderstood. Vould you say so, boy?" He looked at Franz, a thin smile threatening to appear on his lips.

"_Ja, Herr _Medic_,"_ Franz muttered, staring at the floor. Fem-Spy said nothing. There was nothing she could say. Instead she carefully hoisted Fem-Scout up, taking extra caution to her head, into a standing position. She could hear Fem-Scout muttering small nothings in her semiconscious state, but ignored them. She threw Fem-Scout's arm around her own shoulders and supported her back before slowly moving both of them to the door.

"Vould you like some help _Fraulein_ Spy? Ze Scout must have a concussion, at least." There was a strange undertone to the Medic's voice, some strange mix of glee and concern. Fem-Spy had an urge to drop Fem-Scout and go at the German herself. She repressed the impulse. It would accomplish nothing.

"_Merci_ Medic," She managed to say, "But I took a first aid course before coming 'ere, she will be fine."

Before the pair made it out of the infirmary, Fem-Spy noticed a book sitting on the medical counter near the door. It was titled '_The Dunwich Horror and Others_' by H.P. Lovecraft.

"_About monsters,"_ thought Fem-Spy, _"how fitting."_

* * *

She took Fem-Scout to Engineer's work room. He said a dispenser would fix the young woman up in no time. Fem-Spy prayed he was right. She left Engie's room and headed to the back of the base. There, a small door lead on to a section of fenced in property, belonging to RED. It was mostly dirt and rocks, with few patches of grass and crates containing God-knows-what stacked in all the corners. The Scouts usually played their baseball games here and it was a fine place to watch a sunset. Fem-Spy opened the backdoor to find the yard blissfully empty and silent. The sun was making its evening descent toward the horizon, the sky beginning to fill with soft pinks and reds.

Fem-Spy lit a cigarette a breathed in the comforting fumes. They would be fighting again tomorrow. The ceasefire was supposed to be a time to relax, but Fem-Spy felt more wound up than ever. She stood, admiring the sunset and thinking about what she had just witnessed. Fem-Scout had attacked Medic, on accusation of abuse. Fem-Spy furrowed her brow. She couldn't deny she suspected Medic was abusing Franz. Her mind played back to when she met Franz in the kitchen. There had been a bruise on his face then as well. Then there was the question of why. Franz didn't seem disobedient or cruel, but Fem-Spy wouldn't put it past Medic to be a sadistic bastard on his own.

Fem-Spy exhaled a cloud of smoke and studied the sky. What could she do? If Franz didn't admit to Medic's actions, she couldn't confront him with anything. Fem-Scout wouldn't be happy. The young woman's feelings toward Franz were reminiscent to those of the now dead male Scout. The difference was Fem-Scout was much more protective of her new boy. Fem-Spy plucked her cigarette from her lips, exhaling again.

She heard the door behind her open.

"Fancy meeting you 'ere," the French voice drifted over her shoulder, "I was told you 'ad quite a run in with zee Medic, _non_?"

"You could say zhat," Fem-Spy didn't turn around. The crunch of those fancy Italian shoes on the rough dirt alerted her of their proximity. She took a deep breath and thought it best if she didn't mention anything that involved the ceasefire party. Fem-Spy dropped her cigarette to the ground and crushed it under her heel.

"Some team drama I imagine, nothing to get worked up about," Spy was next to her now, not looking at her.

Fem-Spy didn't need this right now. With everything that had just happened and memories of Friday morning, she just couldn't deal with Spy. She wanted to. Oh, how she wished she could smirk up at him and make some snide remark about his appearance or sexual preference and then just walk away, cool as anything. But she couldn't, and she knew it. She didn't have that cocky, don't-even-care attitude that Spy had.

"Zhis is not 'team drama'. Eet is something more serious," she turned to leave, "And I would rather not talk about it." She made her way to the door.

"In case you were wondering," Spy called, "I found some of zee team files."

Fem-Spy froze. Of course, he couldn't have mentioned this sooner. Where would be the fun in that? Fem-Spy turned slowly, as taught smile stuck on her face.

"Well," she said, "Zhat is wonderful. Would you be so kind as to share?"

"Answer me one question," Spy drew out a cigarette from his silver case, "What was your status of employment in 1965?"

Fem-Spy was confused by the question. "Why would you ask? And what does eet matter?"

Spy lit his cigarette. "According to a certain file I picked up, you were unemployed at that time, but still bringing in income. I want to know what you were doing. Anything... Illegal?"

Fem-Spy froze.

It took her a few seconds to find her voice. "Y-you read my file?" It felt weak and hoarse, like her lungs were full of sand. She couldn't, she didn't want to believe it. Her mind went into panic, even more when she remembered what exactly she had been doing for the better part of 1965.

"_Oui, Mademoiselle_," Spy had a half smile strung up on his face, "When I said I wanted to understand my teammates, zhat did not limit me to zee mentally unstable ones," he cocked his head slightly, "Zhere was a picture as well. I must say you look quite pretty without your mask on."

Fem-Spy didn't remember moving. She didn't even remember what she thought at that remark. All she could recall was the motion of throwing her arm at Spy, her fist landing squarely on his nose. Even as he stumbled backwards and thumped in to the base's wall, trying to stem the flow of blood from his face, she recalled nothing. Not anger, not sadness, not fear. She felt blank and hollow. It wasn't until Spy began to straighten up that she even moved again. She stepped toward him and grabbed the collar of his now stained white shirt in both hands. She thrust him against the wall, knocking his head against the concrete.

"You did not look at my file," she whispered with a menace that surprised her.

"On zee contrary," Spy's mouth did a funny thing, almost like a smile, but not quite, "Eet was quite interesting. Zhere is a lot written up on you, _Mademoiselle_."

Fem-Spy couldn't put a finger on her emotions. The only thing she could identify was hate. She hated Spy. No matter what she had felt for him previously or what she would in the future, at this moment she hated Spy with every fibre of her being.

She let go of Spy's shirt and he slumped back against the base wall. He coughed as he fell back and adjusted his tie, attempting to keep his cool demeanour. A difficult feat, considering his mask and shirt were stained with blotches of blood.

"So," Spy began, "Will you answer my question?"

"Go to 'Ell," Fem-Spy spat at him.

Spy gave a smirk. This one was different, however. It wasn't smug or arrogant. Instead it was almost contrite.

"One day, _Mademoiselle_."

After that, Fem-Spy fled. She couldn't stand to look at Spy; it was as if he could see right through her. With all the information he now had, maybe he could. Fem-Spy had never even seen her own file. Who knew what it contained? Nothing _too_ personal she thought but enough for Spy, she was sure.

She didn't know how, but eventually Fem-Spy made it back to her room. She locked her door and stood, staring at nothing. Then she ripped off her mask and threw it to the ground. She tore off her jacket and threw it down as well. With a little more care, she removed her gun holster. Fem-Spy pulled out the Ambassador, the beautiful gun reminding her of what she wanted to forget. She dropped the holster and gun onto the floor. Then she threw herself down on her bed and lay, unmoving, until she couldn't remember anything at all.

* * *

_Oh tense relationships, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways..._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make me want to break into song!_


	14. Going Up and Coming Down

_Why hello there. Here is a new chapter for you wonderful people._

_CubieChellPandaxD: Thank you! I'm glad the RED ladies are giving good impressions. :3_

_general-tommy: Yes, Medic has his own reason for his actions, maybe not all professional (spoiler?). Hey illegal stuff is not all out of the picture. The 1960's were a liberating, but still tough time for women. A girl's got to eat. Oh character relationships, how do I love thee? Yeah, Engie kind of took a back seat because he has a better relationship with a different lady, if you know what I mean. I'll get to him soon. Maybe._

_Rainha Do Mangalho: Oh my gosh thank you for the kind words! :D Fem-Scout is the manly one, I'd say, and Medic has his own intentions. Engie and Sniper are hanging in there. Soon I tell you, their time will come! (Or maybe not.) To continue Pyro is a cutie and Fem-Spy is manlier then Spy, with her MANLY PUNCH. And of course her mysterious past, OOOOoooooh. That will be revealed soon. I can tell you she wasn;t in a gang though. That shiz be wiggity whack, yo. Ahaha, I'm so white. It should also been known I'm watching out for rocks when I'm walking. Am I going to get jumped._

_gozieson: I wouldn't say whore, exactly..._

_Victoria: Thank you! Positivity help me write! :)_

_some1udontknow: What? Go finish that chapter you said you'd send to me! xD_

_This chapter felt a little weird after I finished. I'm not sure I like it yet. If you can't tell, I smoshed two small chapters together to give you fantastic people some more content. Alright then? Let's do this._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

When people are faced with a problem, they usually find the quickest and easiest way to solve it. If the initial route doesn't work, they will ask for assistance from friends or other people. If others cannot help them they wait out the problem or ignore it to see if it will go away on its own. If all else fails they will admit defeat and realize just how screwed they are.

By Wednesday Fem-Spy felt royally, bloody screwed.

Spy was her biggest problem. She had been avoiding him since Sunday, when he had confronted her about her file. She still couldn't believe it. He had asked her about work of all things. What man asks a woman about her work? She couldn't be near him, the ever present feeling of nakedness from reading her file appeared like a bad magician ever time Spy was close by. They had made a deal, the two of them, for the files. She still had Spy's Ambassador and he her Invis Watch. Now she was wondering how she could ever get it back. She didn't want the Ambassador anymore. The gun was beautiful, to be sure, but the painful shock of its recoil was slowly destroying her arm. It also reminded her of Spy, and she didn't want to think of him, at least not at the moment.

Then there was Fem-Scout. Or rather Fem-Scout and Franz. After the mess Fem-Spy had found them and the head Medic in on Sunday, she had told Fem-Scout to stay away from Franz. "Until things calm down," she had said. But would things ever 'calm down'?

Franz didn't sit with them at meals anymore. Fem-Spy hadn't said anything to Medic about the scene she had witnessed on Sunday. Fem-Scout barely talked anymore, saving her energy to cast awful looks at Medic (who sat elsewhere) or Fem-Spy whenever she could. Fem-Spy couldn't blame her. They could accuse all they wanted, but if Franz didn't testify to the abuse he was under, there was nothing they could do.

* * *

Wednesday started off optimistic enough. When Fem-Spy left for breakfast, she found her missing bra hooked over the doorknob of her room. There was a note tucked in to one of the cups that read:

_A certain SOMEONE told me to give this to you. I know it's yours. Good luck!_

_XOXO, D_

'D' for Demo, obviously. How did she get the bra? Fem-Spy tucked that question in the back of her brain to ask the woman later.

Breakfast was quiet. Then again all breakfast seemed a little quieter without Fem-Scout's constant babble. The young woman picked at her eggs, not looking up unless someone directly addressed her. Not many people did. All those present at the table (Fem-Demo, Engie, Sniper and Pyro) seemed to sense something was wrong, but no one said anything. Spy wasn't there either.

Before the day's set up began setup, Fem-Demo swaggered over to Fem-Spy.

"Aye lass," she held her grenade launcher, propped against her hip. "S'there somethin' goin' on with our wee Scout?"

Fem-Spy finished checking her Ambassador and slipped it into her jacket. "_Oui_, Demo. 'Owever, eet is not my place to say what."

"Well, she sure ain't tellin' anyone, an' yer th' only one who knows 'bout it," Fem-Demo looked around with an air of caution that Fem-Spy hadn't seen before. "Is it about th' Medic lad? What's 'is name, Franz?"

Fem-Spy rubbed her left wrist self consciously. She missed her Invis watch. "What would eet matter?"

Fem-Demo paused in thought. "A'right. So it is 'bout him? He hasn't been sittin' with us as o' recent, I figured they had a fight or somethin'," she glanced back at Fem-Spy. "But that's not what happened, is it?"

Fem-Spy shook her head lightly. "Eet's a little more... complicated, to say zee least."

Fem-Demo rubbed her chin. "Well, fine. Tell me about it after th' day's fightin', a'right? I worry about th' lass me self, ya know."

Fem-Spy nodded. She felt comfortable talking with Fem-Demo. The woman seemed so at ease with everything. Maybe she could help sort out this insane problem.

There was an awkward pause as the conversation ended. Fem-Spy searched for something to talk about. She didn't want to stew in her thoughts by herself again. Her attention was caught by a small coloured patch on the brim of Fem-Demo's cap.

"What is zhat?" She motioned toward the patch.

Fem-Demo cast her eye upwards. "Oh, that?" she grinned, "Me dear Engie sewed that up for me. He's a good one with 'is hands tae be sure," she winked (well, it would have been a wink if you could see her other eye). "It's a thistle, th' national flower of me home country. Reminds me of th' man and the country I love."

Fem-Spy smiled slightly. "Would you really say you, err, love 'im? Zee Engineer, I mean."

"I'd like tae think so," Fem-Demo looked thoughtful. "I mean, I know it's war an' all, but it jus' feels right aroun' 'im. It may not be th' kinda love ya read 'bout in romance novels, by it's somethin', ya know?" She leaned over to Fem-Spy, "Then again, I'm sure ya do. How's things been goin' with Mister Spy?"

Fem-Spy's face dropped. Why did she keep bringing this up?

"Zhere is nothing going on with us Demo. In fact, I could live my 'ole life without seeing zhat man again."

"'A course, 'a course," Fem-Demo nodded knowingly. "Jus' do what feels right, aye? 'Cause the boys sure as Hell won't do th' smart thing."

Fem-Spy chuckled. "Well, men are known to be rather thick. Why else would zhey be fighting a random war in zee middle of nowhere?"

"Wait a mo'!" Fem-Demo gave her a serious look, "We're here with 'em, wot does that say 'bout us?"

There was a pause. Then both women burst out laughing. Fem-Demo leaned over and clutched her stomach. Fem-Spy laughed so hard she had to wipe away tears. It was a good feeling. Fem-Spy felt free and happy, unchained from the issues of her teammates. It was the simplest of highs and she did not want to come down.

She had to, of course. The timer about the resupply doors read sixty seconds to the beginning of the match. He RED team flooded out into Gravel Pit. Fem-Spy ran alongside them with a gleeful feeling. True, she had problems and they weren't going away. But for the briefest of times, maybe she could pretend they didn't exist.

* * *

Fem-Spy never thought she would find such solitude in battling to the death. She found it funny how even the most horrifying of actions, like murder, can be done with peace of mind. RED seemed to be holding all the points quite well. BLU had been focusing its attack mostly on point A. As she was backtracking to the resupply, she heard someone calling for help. She found Engie huddled behind a Dispenser and Sentry in the entrance way between point B and C.

"Spah!" He called to her as she approached, "Need some help here!"

Fem-Spy ducked behind the dispenser. "What is eet? I need to get zee point."

Engie motioned to point C, on the tall wooden tower with the laser gun sitting up top. "There's a Sniper set up shop on second most level of the tower. He's hit a few people passin' by. I can barely get around to fixin' my gun," He motion to his Sentry on the other side of the door way. Now that he had mentioned it, it did look worse for wear. "Can ya jus' go and take out that damn shooter? It'd be a great help."

"Of course," Sad Fem-Spy, "Eet will only take a moment."

Fem-Spy was about to reach for her cloak, when she remembered she didn't have her Invis Watch. She had been doing that a lot. Instead she slipped into a Soldier disguise and dashed out from behind the Dispenser. No bullets hit her as she ran to the tower. Maybe the Sniper wasn't looking at her. She had surprise on her side. As she slunk up the ramp of the tower, she removed her disguise and flicked out her butterfly knife. She reached the platform second to the top, the side facing point B, and pressed herself to the tower wall. Trying not to make a sound she leaned her head around the corner to try and see the Sniper. She did see him, but it wasn't what she had expected. To start with, he was a she.

Fem-Spy gazed at the BLU female Sniper in front of her with silent awe. The woman was tall and quite thin, though she was crouched over, looking through her scope. Her long auburn hair was tied in a pony tail. She wore dark glasses, not the yellow tinted ones like RED's Snipers. She looked like a trained killer. And she didn't move at all.

Saying Fem-Sniper didn't move was an understatement. The woman looked as if she had been carved out of stone. She didn't twitch, shift her weight, lick her lips or do anything you may think someone waiting in anticipation would do. Fem-Spy had seen Snipers at work (she'd killed a few of them) and they almost always at least squirmed around in their seats. It made her uncomfortable. This woman didn't look like a real person.

Fem-Spy took careful, quiet steps toward Fem-Sniper. Maybe she could just backstab the woman and be done with it. As she closed in on the crouching woman however, the unthinkable happened. The floor creaked.

Fem-Sniper reacted instantly. She dropped her gun and drew her kukri in one fluid motion. Fem-Spy jumped back as the hunter's knife swung towards her. Fem-Sniper made another swing. This one caught Fem-Spy's left shoulder, sending a spurt of blood pouring down her arm. Ignoring the pain, Fem-Spy pulled back her right arm and released a punch to Fem-Sniper's cheek. The blow caused the woman to wordlessly stumble back. Fem-Spy drew herself up, dropping her knife and groping in her jacket for her gun. By the time she found it, Fem-Sniper was upon her again. Through the whole encounter, Fem-Sniper had not uttered a single sound. Not a breath, not a gasp in pain, nothing. Fem-Spy looked into the black sunglasses advancing upon her and felt a strange kind of terror. She ducked back around the center of the tower until she was on the side of the platform right side of the platform, which faced a tunnel to point A. Fem-Sniper followed her.

Fem-Spy's thoughts were running ramped inside her head. She took a breath a peaked back around the way she came. She was nearly hit in the head by a flying glass jar. Fem-Spy realized, too late, what this was.

The jar exploded on the ground just in front of her, yellow liquid spraying everywhere. "_Mon deiu,_" she muttered in disgust, trying to shake the urine from her gloves and gun. She looked up to see Fem-Sniper coming at her with the kukri again. Fem-Spy cursed and hopped back, eyeing the edge of the platform behind her. Fem-Sniper lunged again, and Fem-Spy got an idea.

With her gun still in hand, she faux stumbled and landed on her back near the edge of the platform. Fem-Sniper, seeing it as an opportunity, swung the knife down at Fem-Spy's chest. Fem-Spy brought up the Ambassador, clutching the end of the barrel in one hand and the stock in the other. She brought the gun in between herself and the knife. A loud _clank_ was heard as the two weapons made contact. Then, Fem-Spy kicked Fem-Sniper upward, hard in the abdomen, using the woman's already forward motion to propel her over herself. Of course, over Fem-Spy there was the edge of the tower. Fem-Sniper flew out of fem-Spy's view almost immediately. Fem-Spy lay panting for a moment, before she heard a muffled _thump_ of a body hitting home to earth. She rolled over and looked down, over the tower's edge.

Fem-Sniper had fallen in front of the lower tunnel to point A. Her right leg was bent an awkward angel and she wasn't moving. Normally this would be enough for Fem-Spy, but in the case of this Sniper it wasn't. She kept watching. Sure enough, in a few moments Fem-Sniper shakily stretched out her arms and pushed herself into a sitting position. She tried to get up, but found she couldn't. The sunglass covered eyes cast themselves up toward Fem-Spy. The woman on top of the tower felt uneasy. She took her gun (which now had a noticeable dent in it) and carefully aimed below. Fem-Sniper couldn't move, so the shot was easy. Fem-Spy however, did not expect the interference of a third party. Before she could take the shot, a barrage of syringes assaulted her from the left. Quite a few priced her skin as she attempted to roll out of the way. She hissed and pulled the needles of her arm and shoulder. Fem-Spy looked down to see a Medic. The Fem-Medic, to be exact.

Fem-Spy knew the chances of Fem-Medic recovering from the day they met in the tunnel were slim, but honestly hadn't expected to see the woman gain. She grimaced and tried to get the Ambassador into position again, this time aiming for Fem-Medic. By then the syringes that hit her were already having some effect. A strange paralyzing sensation spread through her arm, making it hard to hold the gun steady. She took a clumsy shot and missed by at least a foot. Fem-Medic was already pulling Fem-Sniper toward the point A tunnel. As the bullet struck the ground near her, she looked up. When she saw Fem-Spy her mouth stretched into a cat like grin.

"_Guten Tag fräulein!"_ she called upward. Fem-Spy grunted and pulled away from the ledge, hearing the woman cackle madly. Whatever was in the syringes was making its way to her brain, her vision becoming fuzzy. She carefully made her way down the tower, checking the tunnel to point A. It was clear, save for a trail of blood that disappeared around a corner. She left it and crossed the raised walkway to Engie's mini base. Once there, she collapsed in front of his Dispenser.

"How'd it go?" asked Engie, "Y'all right there, Spah?"

"_Oui_, zee Sniper is gone and I am fine," as the glowing warmth from the dispenser enveloped her, she added the insane Medic to her growing list of problems. And this was one she couldn't escape in battle.

"Everything is fine."

* * *

_I think silent things/people are creepy. Don't judge me._

_Note: I'm going out of town for a week, so the next chapter might take a little longer then usual._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments get me PUMPED UP! RAWR!_


	15. Realization and Loss

_Well, hello there. I'm back from vacation. What are you still doing here? A new chapter? Oh of course!_

_general-tommy: We'll get to Fem-Spy! She doesn't like people talking about her is all. Of course a short fight or no fight at all would be no fun. I'm glad I can be seen as improving. All your pointers and comments are helping! :)_

_some1udontknow: Corrupted? Oh my. Do you have a USB, or maybe a public computer? Message me on FB._

_gozieson: I'm trying to work the weapons into the future chapters. So far, so good. They may even be helpful in the story telling. ;)_

_Rainha Do Mangalho: Hey, vacation is a totally legitamite reason. I just got back from one! And yes, I give complete permission to draw whatever sences from whichever chapters you would like (if any). Derp, Fem-Spy has to be a tough little lady. I dunno about violence though. She's seen her fair share of bad situations (lolspoilerswat?). Dohoho villians are the best. THE VERY BEST. :D_

_I kinda rushed this one. Im sorry if there are any grammar mistakes or inconstancies. I'm falling behind in my writing due to unforseen circustances. Damn life._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

The rest of the battle was uneventful compared to Fem-Spy's attack on the Fem-Sniper. She did make a mental note to avoid the Fem-Medic if she ever saw her. Fem-Spy spent a lot of her time sapping buildings, trying to stay out of the main battle zones. Lord knows she annoyed a couple of BLU Engineers to the brink of insanity.

BLU managed to capture the area a number of times, but Fem-Spy wasn't keeping track. By the time the announcement rang out that the fighting was over for the day she just wanted to eat a nice hot meal and some sleep.

After Fem-Spy had made sure all her weapons were in working order, she went to the infirmary to get checked out. The Medics were running around the cots like frenzied birds. Fem-Spy looked around for an unoccupied Medic to give her the clearance to go. She saw the head Medic push an already wobbly Demoman away. He caught sight of Fem-Spy, snapped his fingers and pointed to the cot. She didn't want to go to him, but it was either that or wait until another Medic was free. She wanted to get this over with quickly. Besides, it's not like she had to be nice to him. She made her way over to him and sat on the cot.

"Busy day?" she asked with a smirk as she took off her jacket. Medic looked more haggard than usual. His normally finely combed hair was sticking up in all directions and his face was flushed.

"I have been zrough vorse," he ignored her tone, poking and prodding her body. He bandaged her left shoulder and paused at the puncture wounds on her arm. "Vere you attacked by a Medic?" he asked.

"_Oui_, zee woman got to me before I could finish off a Sniper," Fem-Spy shivered slightly, and not from Medic's touch.

"Ze standard poison in ze Medics needles causes paralysis. Vhat did you do after you vere hit?"

"I went and found a Dispenser. Zhat 'ealed me just fine."

Medic snorted, "Ze Dispenser heals vounds, it does not pull out poison or diseases," he reached to a small, metal table on wheels which held his medical instruments. "Zere is still poison left in your body. An antidote vill heal you completely. Unless you vould like to take ze risk of prolonged death by poison."

Fem-Spy glared as Medic straightened up, holding two syringes of clear liquid. "Why are zhere two antidotes, zhen?" she asked.

"I haff yet to see ze full affects of ze poison a female. I am giving ze woman double doses, just to be safe."

"What difference does eet make eef I am female?" Fem-Spy asked, keeping her voice steady.

"Body mass und veight distribution, mostly," said Medic mindfully, "But zat is not ze matter. I vill give you two shots of ze antidote, just in case."

Fem-Spy glared at the man as she rolled up her sleeve. The German glanced at her face absentmindedly as he checked the first syringe. "Oh, stop zat," he snapped, "Not even ze Scout was zrowing me looks like zat when she was hurt."

"I find zhat 'ard to believe," Fem-Spy kept glaring. "Especially after zee way you treated 'er."

Medic gripped Fem-Spy's arm with more force than needed, "She is a shtupid girl. She needs some direction before she gets herself und someone else killed," he stuck the syringe into Fem-Spy's arm without warning. The pinch was nothing compared to pain Fem-Spy had felt before, but she still grit her teeth. She felt the medicine flowing into her system and relaxed slightly.

"And why wouldn't you want 'er to get killed? Wouldn't eet make your life so much easier?" Medic looked at her as he put down the empty syringe. "I mean with Franz."

"I know vat you meant und no," Medic grabbed the other syringe, "If she was dead, ze boy vould be inconsolable. You should try dealing vith zese young people. Zey are practically children."

"You seem more open to zhere relationship zhen I remember," said Fem-Spy, "You smashed 'er 'ead into zee floor last time zhey were together."

"Well, I vasn't quite myself zen," Medic prepped the second syringe, "She vas punching me in ze face."

"Still, you were so adamant about zhem being apart, now you zhink Scout needs direction," she glanced at Medic. "From who, would you suggest?"

"I vas just zinking aloud. You can't say she doesn't."

"Funny you would zhink so."

Medic pierced her skin with the syringe again. She couldn't feel it this time.

"Maybe you are just jealous Franz is spending more time with Scout zhen you," Fem-Spy joked. Medic froze in the motion of placing the empty syringe on the metal table. Fem-Spy jumped on the pause. "Is zhat eet, zhen?"

Medic dropped the syringe and turned back to Fem-Spy. He picked up a clipboard from the end of the bed and began to scribble on it. "I am finished vith you Spy, you may go."

"So, is zhis about Franz?" Fem-Spy didn't move.

"I can honestly say no," Medic continued to scribble.

"So eet's about Scout?"

Medic stopped writing. "I did not say that eizzah," his voice was taught.

Fem-Spy looked at the man hard. She was trying to figure him out, give him a motive to match his actions. And her head was brimming with ideas.

"So, what? You wanted to keep Franz all to yourself?" she eyed his face, looking for any reaction.

"No, Spy," he glared, "Und you vould do vell not to poke around in ze lives of ozzahs."

Fem-Spy began to roll down her sleeves, "Ah, but I am a Spy, eet is what I do."

"Somezing I vould not condone," Medic grabbed her pinstriped jacket and tossed it on to Fem-Spy's lap.

"But you would condone 'itting a subordinate? Or cracking a young woman's skull?"

"She attacked me. Vere you paying attention, you vould have see zat," Medic placed the clipboard down and watched Fem-Spy over his glasses.

She slowly slipped into her jacket. Fem-Spy noticed Medic had only defended himself on the accusation of hurting Fem-Scout. Why was that? "Maybe you should apologize."

Medic rolled his eyes, "Do you zink she vould listen? Ach, I vouldn't bet anyzing on it."

"You will always fail in what you do not try," said Fem-Spy with the air of a school mistress talking to a young child. "And zee sense zhat you zhink you know what Scout will do says you've zhought about zhis already."

Medic clenched his jaw and looked away. Fem-Spy continued, "And people zhink about other individuals for a variety of reasons. Perhaps hatred," she glanced at Medic, "but I zhink not. Zhen zhere is affection or lust..."

Fem-Spy carefully studied Medic's face waiting for something, anything, to give him away. But it wasn't his face that betrayed him. As soon as Fem-Spy said 'lust', she saw a pink creeping up Medic's ears. Though he suppressed the blush in his face, he couldn't hide it elsewhere.

"So," Fem-Spy looked directly at his eyes, "Is zhat eet?" She heart was beating faster as her brain pieced together her observations, assumptions and conclusions. "You wanted to keep Franz and Scout apart, not because you wanted Franz, but because you wanted-"

Medic moved with a speed that Fem-Spy had never seen, on or off the battle field. He reached to a lower shelf on the metal table and drew a syringe of reddish-brown liquid. Without warning he plunged the syringe into Fem-Spy's thigh. There was a moment of intense pain and then a strange fuzziness began to spread though her body. Fem-Spy grabbed Medic's wrist and he slowly pulled out the syringe. She gripped edge of the cot she was sitting on for support and gasped.

"What was in zhat?" She craned her head to look at Medic.

"Laudanum," Fem-Spy saw a slight smirk crawling up Medic's face. "Just a small dose. I don't vant you infecting the minds of ozzahs vith your ludicrous zeories."

Fem-Spy tried to think straight. Her breathing was slow, though not unsteady. "'Ow did you get laudanum?" She forced her tongue to make the words.

"I have my ways. Now listen little _fraulien_," Medic swooped close to Fem-Spy, one hand on her shoulder, the other still holding the empty syringe, "I don't vant you spreading your inane assumptions about me. I have a reputation to uphold."

Fem-Spy glared into Medic's face. He was so close to her. She was being to feel euphoria coming on from the laudanum. She held on to her anger. "Only eef you let Franz talk to Scout again."

Medic glared, his eyes boring into Fem-Spy. She looked around to see if anyone had noticed this odd interaction. No one had. Were the infirmary lights always this bright? Her head felt heavy.

Medic drew himself away from Fem-Spy. He tossed the empty syringe on the table with the others. "If it vill keep your mouth shut," his voice was venomous.

"Eet will," Fem-Spy tried to stand up. She nearly fell when she placed her feet on the ground. Medic made no attempt to help her. She began to shakily make her way to the door, people moving out of her way and giving her strange looks. "I 'ope to see you at zee meeting," she called back, her voice louder then she expected.

With that she stumbled out the infirmary.

* * *

Once Fem-Spy made it to the meeting room she promptly found a chair and dropped herself in it. There weren't many people there yet and those who were there ignored her. She closed her eyes and embraced the warm feeling of the drugs.

She was woken a half hour later by the British Spy. The room was almost full by then. He said he wanted to wake her in case the meeting started. The high she had gotten from the laudanum had mostly worn off by now (it must have been a very low dose). She spent a few minutes conversing with the British Spy about a trip he had once taken to Paris and an awkward, but humorous situation involving a mime and a French-English phrase book.

Soon enough, the Soldier at the front of the room began shouting and everyone quieted down. Fem-Spy listened to the man's ravings with more attention than usual. She felt good. Because of her, Franz and Fem-Scout would be able to see each other again. She could cross off one problem on her list.

After a while Medic took the stage. Fem-Spy scowled as he flipped through his paper.

"Ze casualties for today are one Soldier, one Heavy, one Sniper und..." he paused on a crumpled sheet, "I haff not yet received a head count for ze Demomen."

Everyone present looked around. Fem-Spy joined in. It looked like everyone was there.

Just then a Demoman in the front raised his hand. Fem-Spy craned her neck. The Demo was sitting with the Engineer. His shoulders were hunched and his face turned down. Fem-Spy frowned in curiosity.

"We're missin' one," the Demo said, his voice flat and low.

"Ach, very well," Medic drew out a pen and poised it above the paper. "Und who is it?"

Demo waited a moment before he answered, "Th' lady."

The whole room was silent. Fem-Spy felt all the feelings from the drugs and otherwise disappear. She was frozen. Was he kidding? Of course he was kidding. This was a joke. Any moment now, Fem-Demo would jump out of nowhere and laugh in their faces. She would swing her bottle of booze and make loud, drunken remarks about Medic and how he was to serious. Then, they would all go to the rec room and drink themselves silly.

Fem-Spy waited. It didn't happen. She looked around the room with growing desperation. Where was she? She had to be here. Fem-Demo wouldn't die, couldn't die. Out of all of the women here, not her.

While Fem-Spy had been looking around Medic had said something and the crowd began to disperse. Fem-Spy remained rooted to her seat. She saw Engie making his way over to her.

'_Oh God,'_ though Fem-Spy, '_Oh God poor Engie.'_

The Texan gave a weak smile as he faced Fem-Spy, "Ya probably jus' heard about this," he voice was quiet, "It was about th' last round. There was some tight defence around one of th' tunnels. We cleared it out with some other Demos and such. Then we went in to build up a base," he pinched the bridge of his nose and inhaled heavily. "We thought we cleared it out, but we missed a Soldier. An' ya know how Soldiers are with war an' all. They get all hopped up an' excited..." He trailed off. Fem-Spy didn't say anything. Engie held out his hand. In it was a rumpled piece of black fabric. Fem-Spy saw a small patch and recognized it as Fem-Demo's hat.

"I think she woulda wanted ya to have this Spah. S-she always said ya were a great gal an' somethin' to watch out for."

Fem-Spy took the hat in her shaking hands. She brought it to her chest and hugged it. She looked back at Engie, a sad smile still on his face.

"I am so sorry," she whispered.

The Engineer chuckled quietly. "Ya have nothing to be sorry about. It wasn't yer fault. An' I'm not sorry. She was a great thing to happen to me. I wouldn't a had it any other way."

It was too much. Fem-Spy felt unfamiliar sensation of tears behind her eyes. Crying was a sign of weakness, she reminded herself. She couldn't let anyone see her cry.

She got up from her chair and without another word to Engie, left the meeting room. She walked through the various corridors to her room, all the while staring at the floor. When she reached her room she entered and locked the door behind her. With careful, slow movements, she folded up Fem-Demo's hat and placed it on her night table. Then in her room, where no one else could see her, she collapsed on to her bed and cried.

* * *

_That's real life._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make bad days better!_


	16. A Few New Days

_Hello? Is anyone still out there? __Hey guys, I'm not dead! I know it's been a while and I apologize. Things have been a bit hairy down on my end of the internet. But I'm trying to get back on track._

_general-tommy: He's just lustful. Medic just thinks younger girls are pretty lol. Thanks for the tips. I wanted to give the impression that not every single event revolves around Fem-Spy, things happen when she's not around. But if it didn't work out right, the crits are useful because they tell me that. That's why I'm here right? To learn._

_Silvermokona: Yeah, Fem-Demo was a favorite eh? Everyone wants to know more about how she died. But you're right, two not-so-tough classes are left on RED. Look out ladies!_

_gozieson: The Gunsliger is coming into play in this chapter, but just a little. As we all know from canon, BLU acatually had the Gunsliger first and I'm sticking with canon as much as I can. Ah yes, the triangle. I'll do my best to resolve that. I hope._

_Alice Kirisame: Thank you for the wonderful review! I'm glad to see my fic is doing good things for the community. :) Anything you can think of to make it better, please let me know._

_Rainha Do Mangalho: Yes, you got the point I was trying to get across! I'm so happy. :D Don't worry, I don't know how much more character death I can handle myself. But then again, they're at war and that means no mercy..._

_**ATTENTION:** __This chapter is jumpy, meaning a lot of stuff happens. I could have split it into two smaller chapters, but felt the flow got really broken down. _

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

Days passed in a blur. Fem-Spy felt empty after Fem-Demo's death. The whole RED team seemed to be in a slump the first battle after the news. It was strange. So many had died before her and so many would die after. Why did she affect the rest of them in this way?

'_Because she's a woman,'_ Fem-Spy thought sourly. _'Women don't kill people and they certainly don't get killed.'_

But she had. To Fem-Spy's knowledge she was the first of the female members on either team to be killed. Some emotional weight settled from that fact. It could almost be called a feeling of failure among the RED's.

It was a few more days before anyone spoke to her outside of battle. One night after dinner Fem-Scout came to see her. It was the first time she's directly talked to Fem-Spy since the incident in the Infirmary. Fem-Spy had been lying on her bed reading when the knock came from the door. She carefully creased the spine of the book and set it on the bed. She went to unlock the door and opened it ajar. Fem-Scout stood, looking up at the French woman. Fem-Scout's initial reaction to her face reminded Fem-Spy of how terrible she must look.

"Um, h-hey Spy," she stammered. "I jus' hadn't seen ya in a while an' Engie an' Snipes said ya were bein' kinda quiet so-"

"What is eet Scout?" Fem-Spy said with more force then she would've liked.

Fem-Scout swallowed and continued, "Well, I jus' wanted to say thanks for lettin' me talk to Franz again. I dunno what you did, but thanks," she let out a smile. "That creep Medic hasn't bothered either of us since. Whateva you got on him must be good."

Fem-Spy felt a smile creeping up her face, but it was not a smile of happiness. Rather it was a smile of pity. Fem-Scout had no idea the implications of 'what she had on Medic' and she wasn't about to tell her.

"Indeed," Fem-Spy felt her throat tighten. She didn't want to talk to Fem-Scout right now. "Will I see you at breakfast tomorrow?"

"Yeah," Fem-Scout took the hint to leave. "See ya later Spy."

Fem-Spy watched the girl scamper down the hall before closing the door with a heavy heart. She snatched up her book and continued to read. After about five minutes she threw the novel to the other side of the room. She simply couldn't concentrate.

* * *

Soon enough the teams moved again, this time to a 'capture the flag' type assignment. The area was one she only knew by reputation, simply called 2Fort for the proximity of the RED and BLU buildings. Fem-Spy felt a small feeling of joy at the prospect. Getting back to reading and examining intelligence would do wonders for her mind and nerves.

The first day posed some interesting finds in the BLU briefcase. The Spies uncovered what appeared to be blueprints and building instructions. These were sent straight to the Engineers, to construct whatever the BLUs had on their side. Over the next few days all of the Engineers were hardly seen outside of battle. After the fighting ended they would retreat to the RED workshop and lock themselves there until dinner. Fem-Spy had been curious and spent some of her time simply standing by the door, listening to the sounds coming from within. There was yelling, muttering and all type of mechanical sounds.

One afternoon she was leaning on the door, smoking, when she had an unexpected guest. Spy decloaked in front of her, causing her to nearly swallow her cigarette.

"_Bonjour mademoiselle_," he said coolly. "May I inquire as you what you are doing?"

Fem-Spy scowled at him as she recovered her composure. "_Non._"

Spy raised his eye brows innocently. "Oh, feeling a little 'ostile?"

"Please," Fem-Spy didn't break her gaze. "You 'ave no right to ask me anything."

"Why? Just because I looked into some _stupide_ files for my own pleasure? Eef zhat is zee case, I apologise," Spy shrugged. "Eef eet is any consolation I did not look past zee first few pages."

"And yet you 'ave zee gall to ask me what I was doing before I came to RED?" Fem-Spy tried to stay angry. She hadn't spoken to Spy for so long. She had forgotten his articulate speech, his smooth movements, small things. She missed them. That's all she wanted to say. She had missed this Spy.

She hated avoiding him, but she couldn't forgive him. Looking at her file was something she considered inexcusable. He could know everything about her, and she was still completely in the dark about him.

Spy drew out his cigarette case. "I am just curious _mademoiselle_," his voice was calm. "You intrigue me. Will you tell me what you were doing in zhat mysterious year?"

"Is a year of unemployment so interesting to you?" snapped Fem-Spy.

"A year of unemployment with pay?"

"Zhere were many loans."

"Zhat you never paid off?"

"You looked at zee 'ole file, didn't you?"

Spy paused. A smile twitched at his face. "_Oui_, I did."

Fem-Spy plucked her cigarette from her lips, dropped it on the floor and crushed it under her heel. "So, you are not only a deal breaking sneak, but a liar as well."

"A liar? _Madam_, I am a Spy as are you. Our job is to lie, kill and not much else."

"I 'oped you would find it somewhere in your incorrigible 'eart to be 'onest for once," Fem-Spy cast her eyes downward. "At least to me."

"Pardon?"

"Nothing."

Spy's gaze lingered on her for a moment. He glanced at his hands before offering his cigarette case to Fem-Spy. She took a white tube from the case without hesitation. Spy smiled and pulled out one for himself. There was a silence as they lit their respective cigarette.

"I am still mad at you," Fem-Spy stated awkwardly after exhaling. She needed to say something.

Spy sighed as he tapped the ash at the end of his cigarette. "I know," his voice was sincere. "I don't want to say I didn't try to mend zhings."

Fem-Spy gazed into Spy's face. What could she say to that? Better yet, what did he mean by that? If there was something he wanted to say, why didn't he just say it? This was all Spy's fault, she thought bitterly. If only he hadn't read her file they could be conversing normally. She wouldn't have to pretend to hate him.

Right then a scream came from the Engineer's work room. Both Spies jumped in surprise. Fem-Spy dropped her cigarette.

"Well, I zhink I'll be off now," she said quickly.

"Indeed," Spy was looking at the door.

Fem-Spy turned at walked down the hall. After she passed a corner she stopped and pressed herself against the wall. She listened. There was the sound of breathing for a few moments, before the clicks of an overpriced pair of shoes slowly made their way down the opposite hallway.

Fem-Spy let out her breath and realized she had been holding it.

* * *

Three days later Fem-Spy was feeling great. She had assisted in capturing the Intel many times and the RED's had done well overall. Even the post battle meeting was bearable. Fem-Spy went off to dinner with what felt like a spring in her step. She gathered her food and went off to her regular table.

"_Merci_," she thanked Sniper as he slid down the bench to make room for her.

"No worries," Sniper gave her a grin. She hadn't talked to him (or anyone much for that matter) over that last few weeks. He still smiled when he talked to her, which made the guilt of ignoring him so much worse.

Fem-Scout was seated on the other side of the bench, next to Franz. The two had seemed almost inseparable after Fem-Spy had her upset with Medic in the Infirmary. Fem-Spy was happy for them, but the very knowledge she had of Medic and his intentions made her shudder. He was the one who she had heard share his opinions on team relationships. Plus he had to be forty, maybe even fifty. Fem-Scout was in her twenties! Fem-Spy was not ignorant of the age gaps in love or lust masquerading as love, but it was just wrong on so many levels.

Fem-Scout waved her fork when Fem-Spy sat and Franz gave her a nod. Engineer was sitting on the other side of Sniper, having trouble with his fork. His right hand seemed stiff and he was moving it slowly. Fem-Spy was considering asking him if it had anything to do with the new level of work going on in the work room. His arm was probably just sore.

Fem-Spy talked with Sniper for a few minutes before Spy and Pyro approached the table. Spy moved to sit in space next to Fem-Spy. Pyro made a growling sound through his mask and Spy carefully retreated to the space next to Franz on the other side of the table. Pyro happily took the spot next to Fem-Spy.

"Hhhhr thhhrr mmsss!" he said with a tone of delight. Fem-Spy gave him a smile.

"Well, I gotta say, we did a pretty good job o' keepin' those BLUs on the run today," Sniper addressed the whole table.

"Ya know what else?" Engie leaned over his plate. "Those bastards are down a lady now."

Fem-Scout looked up at the conversation. "Aw really? How do you know?"

Engie smiled and crossed his arms in a self pleased manner. "One o' mah Sentries got 'er."

"Oh... S'that so?" Fem-Scout glanced uncomfortably at Franz. "Which one did ya get?"

"The Heavy Weapons Girl," Engie's smile disappeared. "I saw their Medic after it happened. She was all over the Heavy, after she died. Practically got herself killed tryin' t' bring back th' Heavy's body."

Fem-Scout frowned. "How com no one did that for Demo, huh?"

Engie pulled up his goggles and rubbed his eyes. "There wasn't much left t' bring back."

The pause which followed this statement was much too long in Fem-Spy's opinion.

"Wwrr thhhrrn," Pyro broke the silence with the muffled speech coveted by all Pyros.

"Indeed," said Franz. "Vell at least zhey vill be vithout one Heavy for zhe match tomorrow."

"One less Heavy is always good in my book," Sniper added.

Fem-Spy smirked at the awkward follow up to Engie's statement, though she knew she shouldn't. After she dealt with her grief she figured it was typical that Fem-Demo would go out with a bang.

"Well, I'm off for th' night," Engie stood up. "Got lotsa work t' do with those fancy blueprints we found."

Fem-Spy looked at her now empty plate. "I believe I shall retire as well," she stood and followed Engie around the table to where they dropped off their dishes. As they walked Fem-Spy slipped and bumped into Engie, causing him to drop his fork and knife.

"Oh _merde_," Fem-Spy bent down to retrieve the fallen cutlery.

"Don't worry 'bout it Spah," the Engineer kneeled as well. He grabbed the fork and Fem-Spy scooped up the knife. As she handed over the knife, her hand brushed Engie's glove. His ring finger suddenly let out a violent spasm with a force that made her nearly drop the knife again. Her eyes shot up to the Engineer's face.

"Something zee matter with your hand, _Monsieur_?" she asked carefully.

"Nothin's wrong," Engineer hadn't put on his goggles yet, his eyes betraying a nervous air.

Without another word Fem-Spy spun the dinner knife around in her hand and plunged in to Engineers gloved hand. He gave a bewildered look downward to the silverware sticking out of his appendage. He didn't gasp in pain and it took Fem-Spy a minute to realise there was no blood flowing from his hand.

A small electronic crackle emitted as Engineer ripped the knife from his glove. He stood up quickly and Fem-Spy ascended as well.

"_Monsieur_," Fem-Spy began. "I know for a fact zhat you are not an idiot, so please do not play zhis off as anything less zhen eet is."

Engie just gave her a glare and went to drop his dishes in the collection bin. Fem-Spy scrambled after him and tossed her dishes in as well. Engineer walked swiftly to the door and into the hallway and Fem-Spy followed him. His movement sped up as he went outside, Fem-Spy nearly jogging to keep up.

"Monsieur, eet is rude to ignore a woman when she is trying to get your attention," she reached out as Engie turned a corner and grabbed his yellow gloved hand. As she did, she felt the Engineer's appendage. It felt strange and thin, like it was nothing but bones. With a sudden feeling of curiosity and agitation Fem-Spy gripped the glove tighter and ripped it from the Engineers hand. What she saw made her jaw physically drop.

Engineers hand was gone, but not gone in the common meaning of the word. There was something in place of his hand but it was not biological, not by far. Just below his elbow his flesh ended and a metal coil enveloped his arm. It extended to his wrist, including wires and gauges along his forearm. The Engineers hand was composed of thinner metal with joints in all the proper placers. The overall effect looked like some beast had torn all the meat off of his hand, leaving behind a grey skeleton.

Fem-Spy kept staring as Engineer realised what she had done. "Why ya little," he spun around and snatched the glove from her grip. "Didn't anyone tell ya t' mind your own business Spah?" His voice had a fierce tone Fem-Spy had never heard before.

"Many a time, _Monsieur_, but zhey 'ad not cut of zheir arms," she watched him pull the glove over the metal hand. "Should I assume zhis is zee product of zee blueprints we captured a few days ago?"

Engineer flexed his fingers. "Well, yeah. I volunteered 'cause we needed someone to test 'em on. We need all the help we can get 'gainst those damn BLUs."

Fem-Spy grimaced slightly. "'Opefully not so much zhat you would 'ave to remove your arm to make way for zhis... monstrosity," she shook her head. "What would Demo say?"

Engineer let a soft growl escape his lips. "Don't pull that one on me Spah. I'm doin' this for her. It's all those BLU bastards deserve. Besides, it's not like it's just a metal hand." A satisfied smiled crossed his face. "You'd be surprised what this little baby can do. Builds a Mini-Sentry in as less than five seconds. Feels great wearin' it too."

"Mini-Sentry?" Fem-Spy questioned.

Engineer's smile fell. "It don't matter, we're not tellin' anyone 'till we got th' rest 'o th' blueprints sorted out," he raised his hand a clenched it into a fist. "An' if you tell anyone Spah, I know where t' find ya."

Fem-Spy swallowed hard. "Are you zhreatening me _Ingénieur_?"

Engie snorted. "Maybe I am. It works, don't it? An' I'm a bit sensitive 'bout mah work, Spah. You should know that," he turned to leave. "Then again ya are a Spah. Ya'll gotta be careful, or ya may know too much."

Fem-Spy watched Engineer walk away from her is silence. She had never seen Engineer acting the way he had been. He was so serious, so dark. It worried her. She sighed.

She wasn't going to tell anyone about the Engineer's hand. If everyone was going to find out about it there was no point anyway. Rubbing her temples, Fem-Spy made her way to the rec room. Most of the team was still at dinner, which also meant no fighting over the television.

She opened the rec room door and sauntered in. It was empty but the television was on, set to an episode of _Mission: Impossible_. She stood for a moment and watched Peter Graves parade around the screen. Then she walked around to the couch and picked up the remote. She sat herself down on the couch and crossed her legs. After a few seconds of channel surfing she found a re-run of _I Love Lucy_. She giggled to herself as she watched Lucille Ball stuffing small chocolates down her shirt.

Fem-Spy pulled her silver case out of her jacket and drew out a cigarette. She lit it up and continued watching. She smiled and tapped the end of the cigarette, holding it over the edge of the couch. The ashes fell slowly and hovered over the floor. Fem-Spy watched them until she realised the ashes _were_ hovering a few inches from the ground. She turned her head to look at the supposedly empty space next to her on the couch. Carefully she reached out her hand and motioned around in the air. After a second her hand came in contact with something that was most defiantly not air. She rolled her eyes. After sticking her cigarette in her lips, she clenched her fist and let out a light punch in the direction she was feeling. Her fist made contact with what felt like a shoulder. There was a muffled curse in what sounded like Italian and a certain RED Spy decloaked next to Fem-Spy.

She stared at Spy for a moment. "Excuse me _Monsieur_, but _ce que l'Enfer_ are you doing?"

Spy gave a small smile. "I apologize _Mademoiselle_, but I _was_ here first."

Fem-Spy raised her eyebrows with a smirk. "Watching _Mission: Impossible_, cloaked, by yourself? Eet's a television program, zhere is nothing to be embarrassed about _Monsieur_."

"I am not embarrassed. I just zhink someone else in zee room would ruin my viewing pleasure. I find it humorous 'ow zee average person views a spy or secret agent. I can say eet is nothing like zhat."

Fem-Spy continued to smirk. "Do you 'ave a phone in your shoe?"

"At least a phone shoe is more believable zhen two women working at a 'yperactive conveyor belt," Spy folded his arms. "And zhat is zee wrong television series. At least get zhat right eef if you are trying to make fun of _moi_."

Fem-Spy laughed. "So you watch multiple fake secret agent shows? Oh _mon deiu_!"

Spy looked quite miffed as Fem-Spy stifled giggles. He snatched up the remote. Fem-Spy grabbed his hand. "Oh no you don't."

Spy looked over his nose at her. "Care to educate me in a program zhat does not mock my profession?"

"But of course," Fem-Spy pulled the remote out of his grip and turned up the volume on the television.

Spy rolled his eyes but made no attempt to change the channel. Fem-Spy pulled her legs up on to the couch and watched the screen with a smile on her face. She was so wrapped up with Lucille in the candy factory, she didn't notice Spy shift himself a little closer to her on the couch.

* * *

_Did you guys catch the fact that '_I Love Lucy_' is one of my favortie tv shows? It's hilarious._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments give me sweet dreams!_


	17. Surprises

_Hey guys. It's been a while. Too long, i must say. Has anyone else noticed a lot of lady fics appearing on the site? An interesting observation._

_CubieChellPandaxD: Up to something alright. I'm gald it flowed okay. :)_

_Ragna89: D'OH! Thanks for that find, I fixed it right I away. And thank you for the compliments. :D_

_gozieson: Thanks! I'm pretty sure cheesy-spy-hating Spy has been done before, but I love that idea. I followed the drama surrounding 'Brody and Sniper' and I think the biggest thing that impressed my was the writer. She was very mature about all the crap doing down on her fic. I read the thread on the Ninja, and I say while in game it would be a difficult class, in a fic I'm sure you could pull it off. by all means, get writing! :)_

_general-tommy: Ah, running. How do I love thee? Glad to see you're alive. I'm glad the chapter worked alright. After I reread it, I was really worried. I'm not really sure will happen with Engie at this point. Shit does down in this chapter but after that, not really sure. **HEY YOU.** I upload the wrong version the first time, so sorry for the repeated dialogue. Derp, my stupid is showing._

_kappy-and-tea: Thank you very much! :3_

_Rainha Do Mangalho: I must say I am flattered! :D If you go to chapter 2, (I think) there is a description of Fem-Spy's general attire. If you can wait a few more chapters, you'll get a fuller physical description. Demo and Scout are mostly the same as the dudes. Chapter 1 has some description as well._

_maxrider1: Thank you very much. Don't worry, Fem-Medic is coming back. ;) If you have a fic, (I'm sure I've said it befoer, throw it up hear! The best way to get reviews is to get your stuff out there!_

_some1udontno: Because he's Pyro! you try speaking with a gas mask on. lol_

_Well, not much more herping and derping I can do now. Enjoy the chapter!_

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve CorpBration. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page. _

* * *

Fem-Spy woke the next day with elation flowing through her veins. She opened her eyes and kicked the covers off her body. There was a spot of sunshine flowing through her window. The day looked promising.

Breakfast was a pleasant, though placid affair. The only exciting moment was when Sniper couldn't find his favourite mug. The pre battle meeting yielded some interesting moments. The Engineers came forward to show what had been built from the pilfered BLU documents. Fem-Spy sat in the back of the room biting her lip. Fem-Scout had sat beside her, making comments about every piece of machinery displayed.

First was the Gunslinger, the metal hand Fem-Spy had seen yesterday.

"That's damn freaky. Did he cut off his hand? D'ya think he has it in a jar or something?" Fem-Scout quipped.

Second was the Mini-Sentry, a fast building low attack gun. The checked paint and small flashing light gave an affect of almost cuteness.

"That thing could kill somebody! They'd better be careful where they put that."

Third came the Wrangler, a device that could control Sentries manually.

"Come on! They shoot at anythin' that moves already! What the Hell?"

The last two were a specialized wrench and shotgun that Fem-Spy didn't really pay attention to.

"What do they need with those? The Sentries do all the work. I don't even get it, why don't they make somethin' the BLU's don't have if we got their-"

"Scout, please shut up."

Set up was standard, everything done like clockwork. Fem-Spy counted her disguises in anticipation. As she finished, she looked over at the Fem-Demo's Engineer. He was checking and double checking his tool box. His glove was tucked into his belt, the metal hand glinting in the fluorescent lights of the Resupply room. She thought for a moment, and then decided to approach him. He didn't notice until she was right behind him.

"_Bonjour_ Engineer," She tried to sound upbeat.

"Howdy Spah," He responded, without turning around. "Glad to see everyone was still surprised with our new toys."

"_Oui_," She paused. "I 'ave one question, _Ingénieur_. Why were you zee first one to cut off your arm?"

Engineer slowly turned to face her. "An' why would ya say I did that?"

Fem-Spy pulled out her cigarette case. "I was outside zee workshop a few days ago when I heard a scream. If zee Engineers were trying to keep a secret and zhey knew how much pain attaching a metal hand to a bloody stump would be, zhey would have muffled it. Zhey clearly did not, 'ence a scream escaped. Your fingers twitching at dinner, as well. I could tell it must be not quite perfected yet. Why release many prototypes, when zhey can perfect a single model and duplicate eet?"

Engineer grunted. "Okay, okay, I got ya Spah."

Fem-Spy flicked open her lighter casually and lit her white tube. "So zhen, why?"

"I said already, no one else was volunteerin'," Said Engineer, fidgeting with his robotic hand. "An' I figured, why not? Anythin' to give us an edge up on those BLU bastards."

Fem-spy carefully replaced her lighter and cigarette case with the confines of her jacket. "Zee BLUs 'eld zee original plans. I 'ardly see how 'aving a Gunslinger would give us an edge, rather zhen make eet an even playing field."

Fem-Spy looked at Engie hard. The man had his jaw clenched tight. She was pulling strings, though she wasn't sure which ones. She tried to take a softer approach.

"What woman would want a man with a robotic hand?"

Engie's face shot up. Fem-Spy nearly jumped backward at the suddenness of the motion. "I told ya Spah, don't make this about her," He growled. "Don't ya dare. This is about those BLU bastards. They're gonna pay, for everything an' everyone they've hurt."

Fem-Spy's face fell. She listened to the Engineer's threats with a sinking in her heart. She knew he wouldn't stop his hunt for BLU blood, not now. All she had seen of him was with Fem-Demo, as a sweet, caring Texan with an incredible mind. Now however, he was a man Hell bent on the revenge of his lover, and nothing would sway him.

"Now if ya don't mind," Engineer startled her with his speech, "I'd like t' go an' get ready for our fight. Some unlucky jackass is gonna get his head bashed in."

Fem-Spy gave him a stiff nod and turned to walk away. She had walked maybe ten feet, when she stopped and turned back to look at the man. She saw him with his back to her, bending over the mechanical monstrosity on his arm. She saw him pull a cord near his elbow and the metal claw spun viciously. A cold laugh floated to her ears.

It was then she realized there was nothing she could do. No matter what she said to the Engineer, he would be focused on his one goal. She felt truly sorry for any BLU that stood in his way.

* * *

The gates opened and the REDs flew out into 2Fort.

Fem-Spy dashed over the bridge, ducking into the left entrance to the BLU base. She crept around the corner and waited in the shadows for the first rush of BLUs to run past her. After they had past she slipped into an Engineer disguise and slunk into the courtyard. There wasn't a soul or Sentry in sight. She made way up the stairs, two at a time, until she was right outside the BLU supply room. With a quick peek around she saw no one was there either. The BLUs were setting up fast.

She dove for the stairs leading down into the BLU's intelligence room. Fem-Spy ran through the narrow, curved hallway until she reached the main room. Sadly, she was not the only one there. Two Dispensers and two Sentries were set up, with a gaggle of at least four Engineers jumping around them.

'_They have more Engineers then we thought,'_ Fem-Spy counted as she stood beyond the doorframe. Not wanting to jump into the fray just quite yet, Fem-Spy backtracked to the BLU supply room. She carefully made her way on to the roof and looked out over the courtyard where the two teams were battling. No team was getting by the other, a practical stalemate happening on the bridge. Some of the people jumping (or falling) into the water made their way into the large sewer pipes leading to the underground section of the bases.

Fem-Spy observed all this from a quiet corner on the BLU team's roof. Sooner or later there would be a strong push from one team and then it would all go to Hell. Might as well make it easier for her team. She glanced around the roof. There was one Sniper on the far end, hiding in the shadows. Fem-Spy, still in her Engineer disguise, tried to work out if she could get away with a clean stab. After a moment the Sniper whipped their head around to face Fem-Spy. It took a moment for her to realise it was the female Sniper.

"Ah, Sniper," Fem-Spy instinctively took a step back. How would the other BLUs act around the Sniper? "I was jus' lookin' for some metal. Don't mind me." Fem-Spy ducked into the windowed section in the middle of the balcony.

The female Sniper didn't say anything. She instead raised her rifle, scanning the entrance to the RED fort. Fem-Spy saw her opportunity. After searching through the ammunitions box and finding the proper ammo for her Ambassador, she made to move past Fem-Sniper. The woman didn't move, not even look over her shoulder. Fem-Spy carefully flicked open her butterfly knife. At the sound, Fem-Sniper whipped around, dropping her rifle. She swung her arm at Fem-Spy's neck. Fem-Spy shot her arm up to protect herself. Fem-Sniper then threw all her weight onto Fem-Spy's neck, pinning her to the wall.

A moment passed. Fem-Spy realised she still had her disguise on. Fem-Sniper stared at Fem-Spy's face (or at least she thought she was. The black glasses gave away nothing). Fem-Spy looked at the face of her assailant. Up close, she saw line around Fem-Snipers mouth and extending around her eyes. Her skin was dark and covered in sun spots. Scars dotted her arms and neck, faded gashes on her tanned body. The woman was also tall, taller than Fem-Spy thought. She towered over the French woman like a tree over a small child.

After the unbearable moment, Fem-Spy felt Fem-Sniper grip loosen slightly. For a moment Fem-Spy though her disguise was convincing enough. Then the BLU Sniper opened her mouth and uttered three words. Her voice was scratchy and quiet. She sounded English, but Fem-Spy couldn't be sure. But it didn't matter what she sounded like, her words were piercing.

"You're not him."

Fem-Spy's eyes widened. That was the last thing she had expected to hear out of her enemies mouth. A comment about a teammate? This woman seemed ruthless, a killer in the flesh. Fem-Spy tried not to think about it at the moment. Instead she threw her weight against Fem-Sniper, pushing her toward the edge of the balcony. Fem-Sniper flailed as she tried to regain her balance, her arms wind milling. Fem-Spy gripped her knife tightly and plunged it into Fem-Sniper's chest, aiming for her heart. The knife hit home, a spurt of blood flying from its target.

Fem-Spy watched as Fem-Sniper stared at her chest, stumbling backward. Just as she reached the edge, she looked up at Fem-Spy. There was nothing but the soulless black sunglasses gazing forward, a trickle of blood from her mouth. Then she fell. Fem-Spy rushed to the edge of the balcony. One story down, Fem-Snipers body lay sprawled on the dirt, just as lifeless as it had the first time Fem-Spy looked down at the woman. Only this time she wouldn't be getting up.

The battle in front of the two bases was picking up. Fem-Spy saw a BLU Soldier run to Fem-Sniper and check her pulse. A moment later the helmet whipped upward to where Fem-Spy was standing. She barely moved before he had thrown his rocket launcher on to his shoulder. Fem-Spy ducked into the doorway she was closest to, slipping on an Engineer disguise for good measure.

The next few minutes passed as if Fem-Spy were in a dream. People's voices sounded distant and muffled. She moved robotically, going from one point to the next. First, passing BLU's Resupply, then through the courtyard, into the twisting hallways. She ran across the bridge, dropping her disguise as she did. Eventually Fem-Spy found herself in her own Resupply room. She took a deep breath. A stain on her arm piqued her curiosity. She looked down to see she had been cut by something, and not even noticed. She quickly went to fetch a bandage from the resupply locker. There she found Sniper retrieving some bullets for his rifle. He nodded at her.

"'Ello Shelia," he said. He glanced at her arm. "Havin' a good time?"

"But of course," Fem-Spy betrayed a smile.

"Well, keep it up. We got 'em on the run," he gave her a grin as he exited the room.

Fem-Spy finished tying her bandage. She would have to get it looked at, or at least shot by a Medigun. But there were more pressing matters at hand right now.

* * *

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make me want to do a swan dive!_


	18. Human After All

_Hey all. I'm not dead, I promise. Things are just a little hectic around my life. I'm trying to catch up on my writing._

_general-tommy: Short chapters seem to be my thing now, and thanks for catching my derp last chapter. The proper version has been put up._

_kappy-and-tea: My goodness, I hope nothing happens to your heart! Thank you for the compliments, I'll write faster this time, I promise!_

_CubieChellPandaxD: You're interpeting this story so well. All the people on the teams are just human, right? They all have feelings and bonds with other teammeates, and they play out on the battle field. Oh, silly Sniper. xD_

_gozieson: No problem! Helping people with TF2 related needs is what I do. :) Yeah, the BLU girls are a bit nuts, I won't lie, and Fem0Medic is the only one left. Can you say, 'showdown'? I'll try and pick up with my writing, and I'm looking forward to your Ninja story!_

_maxrider1: With Fem-Sniper, who knows? Who do you think would get close to her anyway? Engie is just getting close to losing it. I don't think he'll have much 'screen time' in the rest of the chapters, but I think we know what'll happen to him._

_krazykiki: Thank you for making me smile. :D_

_And as the story goes... Well, you'll see._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page. _

_

* * *

_

"And THAT is why I do NOT need some DAMN Nazi- OW!"

A needle prick to the arm interrupted the Soldier's ranting. Fem-spy watched with a smirk. The infirmary was its usually hustle and bustle after the day's battle. Fem-Spy was waiting to be checked out by Franz.

"Herr Soldier, zis needle is a painkiller. It vill do nozing but good," Franz was trying to sound firm and confident.

"PAIN IS WEAKNESS LEAVING THE BODY, MAGGOT. SO I WILL KEEP MY PAIN WHERE IT IS," the Soldier yelled. He then stood abruptly and stomped off. Franz sighed nervously. Fem-Spy chuckled slightly as she stepped up to the young Medic.

"'Ello Franz," She greeted him. Fem-Spy sat on the cot Soldier had previously been occupying. "Everything all right?"

"_Ja, _Spy," Franz smiled as he pick up a clipboard from the end of the cot. "Ze Soldiers alvays scare me a little."

"Zhey seem to do zhat to everyone."

"Indeed... Now, any injuries zat require a follow up treatment?"

"_Non_, I believe zhere was nothing zhat severe," Fem-Spy paused as Franz scribbled on his clip board. "Franz, 'as zee 'ead Medic seemed... Odd to you as of late?"

Franz glanced up. "No, _Frau_ Spy. To be honest, he has been all but ignoring me."

"Is zhat a good zhing?"

"Ach, in some vays yes. But at ze same time..." He paused in his writing. "It is difficult to act vithout ze guidance of ze more experienced Medic, _ja_? Like if you had to act vithout your Spy."

Fem-Spy gave a nervous cough at the latter comment. "Well I'm sure I would be fine without zee Spy," She stated.

Franz surrendered a small smile. "_Ja_, of course _Frau_ Spy. But I must speak vith ze Medic. Zere is no vay I vill be able to continue vithout some type of guidance," He frowned. "I simply do not know enough."

Fem-Spy swallowed. "I'm sure 'e will listen if you speak to 'im. You are a part of 'is team."

Franz shook his head slightly at Fem-Spy. "Ach, you do not know enough about him."

She scratched her chin. "Would you like me to speak to 'im?"

Franz's head shot upwards to face her. "No, _nien_! Please don't _Frau_ Spy!"

"Alright!" Fem-Spy tried to quell the alarm in her voice. "I will leave it to you."

Franz seemed to calm down. His face dropped back to his clipboard. "I am finished, _Frau_ Spy. You may go."

Fem-Spy leaped off the cot and exited the room quickly. She thought she had done the right thing by stepping up to the head Medic, making Franz and Fem-Scout's live better. Now she wasn't so sure.

* * *

The battle next day was strenuous, to say the least. Fem-Spy didn't feel like she was contributing much and the BLUs were bearing down on the REDs hard. The overcast sky hinting toward a storm did nothing to help.

Fem-Spy carefully slunk around the left front archway into the BLU base. There was a skirmish going on in the courtyard. She decided to avoid it. Taking the same route she had yesterday, she skipped up the stairs into the area around the BLU's Resupply. She glanced down one hallway before taking the one that went to the BLU balcony. Slipping on an Engineer disguise, she hoped no one would be on a strict lookout. Her escapades from yesterday were sure to have set some BLUs off. Losing a good Sniper was something to seek revenge over.

Fem-Spy carefully glanced out to the bridge. The front of the base was empty, except for a RED Soldier fighting and BLU Scout and (surprise, surprise)the Fem-Medic. The Scout seemed to be taunting the Soldier, leaping to and fro without attacking very much. The woman was dashing around behind the Scout, clearly agitated. The Soldier fired off a rocket, blasting the Scout off the bridge and into the water below. Fem-Spy heard the insane laughter of the American and watched intently.

'_No you fool,'_ she thought. _'That Medic could kill you! Pay attention!'_

But Soldiers are not known for their attention spans. Before he could reload, Fem-Medic had whipped out her Bonesaw and raked it over the man's chest. There was a yell of pain and a grunt as Soldier hit the ground. Fem-Medic stood for a moment, admiring her work, before crouching down and swinging her Bonesaw again and again. Luckily, Fem-Medic's back was to Fem-Spy, but she closed her eyes anyway. She couldn't block out the Soldier's screams, and she didn't want to see the expression on the BLU woman's face.

After a few seconds, the screams stopped. A rough Bostonian voice yelled up from the moat. Fem-Medic paused in her butchery and calmly walked over to the edge of the bridge. Fem-Spy tried not to look at the mass of bloody flesh that used to be Soldier.

The Scout seemed to be yelling up from the water. Fem-Medic shook her head violently and turned to move back to the BLU base, leaving the Scout in the water. When Fem-Spy saw Fem-Medic from the front, her uniform looked more red then BLU.

The noise of the fight from the courtyard was increasing, or perhaps getting closer to the outside. Fem-Spy made to turn and head back to the courtyard. In doing so, she almost bumped into a real BLU Engineer.

"Watch where yer goin'!" The heavy accent drawled.

Fem-Spy tried to step around the stocky man. "My bad, partner. Ah was goin' t' get some more metal. If you'll excuse me..." Fem-Spy didn't wait for his replay. She sped out of the balcony area and down the steps to the courtyard. When she didn't hear any footsteps following her, she stopped to catch her breath. A quick glance around chocked her. There were bodies all over the ground of the courtyard, both RED and BLU teammates fallen. Fem-Spy carefully tread around the corpses. She tried not to look at their faces, fearful she might remember them.

It wasn't until she reached the door she heard a small moan. With lightning speed she pulled out her gun and aimed it at the edge of the doorframe, where she heard the noise. There, crumpled in a sad, sorry pile was the head Medic. Fem-Spy was frozen for the briefest moment in shock. She quickly snapped out of it and swooped to the man's side, removing her disguise. She addressed his body. His whole right arm and leg had been torn into a bloody, ripped mess. It looked like a spray of bullets had caught him. Fem-Spy could see bits of bone and strings of muscle under the tears of his clothing, accompanied by a smelly, leaking puss. She tried to focus on the parts of his body that weren't in shreds. He was still breathing, that was good, but his heart was beating at an odd rate. She carefully touched his face, checking its color and warmth, when both his eyes shot open.

Fem-Spy kept calm. "_Monsieur_ Medic, you are wounded_._"

Medic glared at her. "Of course I am _dummkopf_. Do I look like I could valk out of here?"

Fem-Spy pressed her tongue to the inside of her cheek. "Don't get snippy with me _monsieur_. What 'appened?"

"Ve vere on ze attack. But a Heavy Veapons Guy ambushed us from ze top of ze stairs," Medic tried to shift his weight, but grit his teeth hard in pain and decided to stay put. "Ze rest of ze team turned zeir tails und ran. Ze cowards," he spat.

Fem-Spy continued to examine Medic's body. There was no way he was going to get out of here without the Medigun. She looked around for it.

"Where is your gun?" She asked.

"Behind ze doorway," Medic turned his head to wipe his cheek on what was left of his coat.

Fem-Spy crawled around Medic's body, looking for the handle of the Medigun. She saw the familiar barrel in a pile of broken machinery and grabbed it with increasing hope. She spirits sank when she felt how light the Medigun was, even just by the barrel. She pulled the it toward herself and found it wasn't attached to anything, just a piece of cylindrical metal. On closer inspection, she saw the Medigun was in no less than five pieces. She felt her face fall.

"Cannot find it _fraulein_?" Medic's voice made her jump.

"Well, I 'ave found it," she began. "I just don't zhink we can use it."

Medic gave a dark laugh. "Typical, ze one zing I use every day und in cannot even save my life."

Fem-Spy crawled back to Medic. She gave him a pitiful smile. "Is zhere anything I can do for you?"

"If you vouldn't mind," he began, "Perhaps one of your cigarettes? I have not had one in so long."

Fem-Spy scoffed. "A doctor smoking? I'm surprised."

Medic shook his head slightly in open annoyance. "_Bitte_ Spy, I have minutes, not days."

Fem-Spy pulled out her cigarette case and lighter. It was amazing how this man could be dying and still make her feel like an idiot. She lit one up and placed in his lips. The German inhaled deeply and released a small cloud from the side of his mouth. Fem-Spy waved it away.

"Zhis may be zee wrong time, but I ask, why 'er?"

Medic furrowed his brow. "Who?" he questioned, the cigarette still clutched in his teeth.

"Scout."

Medic chuckled lightly. "_Fraulein_ Spy, I am a difficult man, as you can tell. I do not feel ze need to explain my desires und admirations to you."

"But she 'ates you," Fem-Spy felt angered for some reason. Why couldn't this man see what he was doing to this poor girl? Why couldn't he leave her alone?

"Und your point?" He said sardonically. "Has every little boy you set your heart on loved you dearly?" Fem-Spy felt her face flush. Medic continued, "I am an old man, _Fraulein_. Perhaps too old. I vill admit my tastes in women may be seen as odd, but I've lived long enough to learn not to regret ze zings I do." He stared toward the BLU base door, where the moat and bridges were under fire, watched over carefully by the cloudy sky. "I don't regret anyzing."

Fem-Spy stared at the man before her with something like respect. She felt pity for the dying Medic. She had only seen him as a tyrant and a violent individual. Perhaps she had been wrong. He was human, after all.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of footsteps above the pair. The Engineer on the balcony must be getting suspicious that his partner was taking so long just to get some metal. She looked down at Medic. He gave a self pitying smirk.

"I hear him," He groped for his Needle gun. Finding it, he hoisted it up and propped it on his still intact hip. "I vould leave now, Spy. I vill hold him off as long as I can."

Fem-Spy swallowed the lump in her throat. "_Merci_ Medic."

"Und vone last zing," he said. "Tell Franz...Tell him to be careful."

Fem-Spy nodded fiercely, trying to shake away her emotions. The footsteps, slow and deliberate now, got closer. Medic motioned to the door behind him. Fem-Spy ran, without looking back. She entered the main front of the forts and even as the battle got louder, she could hear the sounds coming from the BLU base behind her. A few short pops of flying needles, the single bang of a shotgun and then silence. Fem-Spy ducked around the fighting BLUs and REDs, not caring much where she was going. In a burst of vengeful adrenaline, she stabbed a BLU Demoman in the back. He fell instantly as her disguise evaporated. There was a yell of 'Spy!' among the BLUs. Fem-Spy picked her way through the crowd, ducking into the RED base. She went straight for the Resupply, to pick up bullets. When she got there, she did a quick check to see if she was hurt. Though she wasn't physically, there was a strange pain inside her. A pain she didn't think a Medigun could heal.

* * *

_So there's that. I have to check my notes, but I think we're reaching the beginning of the end of this fic. I'm not such how many more chapters, but it's not a huge number._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments help me finish my homewrok faster, and I need to get it done!_


	19. One Short Night

_Well hello there my lovelies. I come bearing a new chapter, finally. I'm not really happy with my editing on this one. I hope you still enjoy it._

_general-tommy: Thanks for the critique! I do realize the movement and actions went a little wonky. And the accents, working? What witchcraft is this! Thanks again for watching my writing back. :)_

_krazykik: Thanks so much! :)_

_maxrider1: Thank you! Franz isn't in this chapter so much, due to other plots moving along. But I promise he'll be in the next one!_

_gozieson: Thank you for the enthusiastic review! :D I'm glad my writing can get some of these points across, like the fragility of humans. In terms of the update, I don't think I'll be adding much if anything from the new update. There's nothing significant or game play breaking that I think will add anything to my story, but we'll see. As for the Respawn system, it's my head cannon that there are only nine men, and they just die and come back to life again and again. I used multiples of the classes in this story because I felt it would make more sense (I don't think in the time period the game is set, any company would replace a major part of it's labour force with women). It also give me more to play with in terms of plot. For your writing, school come first! Trust me, it's mostly the reason I'm so late with my chapters. ;) AND OH MY GOD THE L4D COMIC. SO MUCH LOVE._

_CubieChellPandaxD: Well, this story is going to end one of three ways. 1. Fem-Spy will die 2. Fem-spy will complete her assigned time on RED and leave 3. Fem-Spy will somehow extend her stay with RED. You can guess if you want, but I already have my ending planned out. ;)_

_Nixieneo: Thanks much! It's good to see less Sues anywhere, amirite?_

_Karin Heinrich: I'm typing as fast as I can!_

_some1udontno: Dear lord no! Or maybe, she does smoke a lot._

_Okay guys, let's get this train wreck a-rolling!_

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page. _

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The after battle meeting that day was hard. Without the head Medic to regulate things, his second in command had to step up. The new head Medic was years younger than his previous, with an awkward demeanour and hair that was too long. Fem-Spy could tell it would take a while for this man to gain any proper respect.

The new head Medic took the RED team's attendance and went though the meeting with a surprising calmness. The rest of the team, however, had the same grim cloud hovering of them when Fem-Demo had died.

The whole of the Medic team was devastated, to say the least. Throughout the meeting, Franz sat with his class mates, eyes glued to the floor, slowly rocking back and forth. Fem-Spy noticed Fem-Scout watching him anxiously. She made several impatient motions toward Fem-Spy during the debriefing. Fem-Spy wanted to smack the girl. Even if Medic was not the most positive role model, he meant something to Franz. The man needed some time to himself.

Needless to say, as soon as the meeting ended, Fem-Scout ran over to Franz and wrapped her arms around him. He barely moved.

Fem-Spy didn't approach the pair. She felt the need to respect Franz's privacy. Picking her way through the crowd of REDs, she made her way out of the meeting room and to her own. Making sure the door was locked, she stripped off her balaclava and tossed it on her bed. Her gloves were next off, thrown haphazardly on the floor. She took her hair out of its tight bun and shook her head. The hair that obscured her vision was darker then she remembered, probably from not seeing sunlight for so long. She ran her sweaty hands through her locks and noticed their length. She tried to think of the last time she cut her hair. It had been much too long.

Still pawing at her tresses, she made her way over to the one small window of her room. She threw her head back and stared out the tiny pane of glass. The dessert surrounding 2Fort was as barren and empty as ever. From the side of the fort her room was on, there wasn't much to see out the window. Far in the distance there were mountains. They stretched across the horizon, disturbing the smooth flow of the cloudless sky. She saw a swirl of dust blow across the landscape. It made her feel pensive. She unhooked the latch of the window and pushed it open. A warm breeze blew into the room. Fem-Spy just realized how stuffy it was in there. She moved away from the window, leaving it open. Pulling her hair up loosely, she walked to and sat on her bed, just enjoying the air circulate the room. Sometimes she didn't need much to be happy.

* * *

She didn't do anything else until dinner. Even at the meal, she was mostly silent. It didn't matter much as most of the conversation circled around the deaths of the day's fight. Needless to say, much of it was about the dead Medic. It was at that meal she saw how much gossip there really was about the head Medic and his goings on.

After dinner she retired to her room immediately. As soon as she opened her door, the wave of cold air nearly made her fall over. She then realized the mistake of leaving her window open. She quickly closed it, but it would take a while for the rooms temperate to adjust. She left and scoured the base for something interesting to do. Her options quickly degraded into watching television, playing baseball with the Scouts or cleaning the infirmary (the new head Medic needed to settle in, to say the least). She settled on the television. Before she went she picked up a bottle of light rum for one of the Demos. It probably wasn't what most people would consider 'light', but after what she had been drinking the past three months, Fem-Spy thought her liver would be able to handle it.

When she entered the rec room, she found it strangely empty. A small group of Heavies, Demos and Engineers were playing a disjointed game of pool. An even smaller group was perched around the television. Fem-Scout sat on the couch with Franz's head in her lap, gently stroking his hair. He was stretched over the rest of the couch, eyes glazed and mouth slack. Fem-Spy looked toward the television. There was a dance showcase program flashing across the screen. The partners were jumping and twirling, spinning each other gaily as if everything was perfect in the world. Fem-Spy found a large, plush chair in one corner of the room and dragged it closer to the television, but still out of the general group. She climbed onto the chair and curled up with her rum.

Hours passed. It was passed midnight when someone disturbed Fem-Spy. By then the rec room was mostly empty. The group in front of the television had dissolved and the only people left were the ones playing a game of pool where all the rules of real pool didn't seem to matter. She was still in her chair, not at all sleepy, when a hand placed itself on her shoulder. Her head whipped up to see Spy staring down at her.

"_Mademoiselle_, it is quite late. I would recommend you get to bed."

Fem-Spy glared up at him. Her evening was going _so_ well. "_Pardon Monsieur_, I'm an adult. I can get myself to bed."

"An adult?" Spy raised his eyebrow. "You could 'ave fooled me."

Fem-Spy rolled her eyes and reluctantly rose from her chair. The cool air hitting her warm skin made her instantly regret her decision, but she wasn't going to sit again. Without taking the empty bottle with her, Fem-Spy left the rec room. She walked down two hallways before she felt someone was following her. She turned to see Spy.

"_Pardon_, but why are you following me Spy?"

"Someone must make sure you get to your room without any trouble. Zhere are some men in zhis base 'oo would love to see you in a dark 'allway, slightly intoxicated."

Fem-Spy creased her brows. "I 'ad 'oped zee men in zhis facility would keep zhat kind of zhing to zhemselves."

Spy chuckled slightly. "We are but human and we 'ave simple desires _Mademoiselle_."

"Well, I am fine_ Monsieur_. I am 'ardly intoxicated and I know where I am going."

"Even after a bottle of rum?"

"I 'ave developed a cast iron liver while 'ere."

Spy smiled. "And you seem prepared to wander through dark and shady alleys. Impressive."

Fem-Spy tried her best to keep up her glare. "What is zhis about Spy?"

Spy reached into his jacket for his cigarette case. "I am curious about you _Mademoiselle_. Is it not a surprise I enjoy being around you?"

Fem-Spy couldn't help but feel irritated. This interest in her life went beyond simple curiosity. He went to look up her personal files, for goodness sake. She couldn't deny her admiration (and something else, perhaps) for Spy, but it made her feel strange. She didn't want these feelings to grow any more. She had always prided herself on professionalism, and with men it made all the difference.

"_Monsieur_, I would request you leave me alone. I am sure I 'ave gained enough skill 'ere with and without your 'elp."

"Zhat is 'ardly a reason," Spy seemed put off by her comment.

"It is a perfectly legitimate reason," Fem-Spy felt her annoyance growing. "Why must you bombard me with zhis perfectly self indulgent invasion of my privacy?"

Spy glared. "Please, do not be arrogant enough to zhink I would single you out as a woman or any other way."

"I did not say anything about me being a woman!" Fem-Spy felt her temper flare. Why did he bring this up?

"Keep your voice down _Madamoiselle_," Spy was still playing with his cigarette case.

The comment did nothing to quell Fem-Spy's anger. There he went again, speaking to her as if she were a child. How could he always do that?

"I will speak at whatever volume I like," Fem-Spy said, raising her voice slightly.

"Do what you want, it does not raise anyone's opinion of you," Spy drew out a cigarette and placed the case in his jacket pocket.

Fem-Spy was biting her tongue now. Her fists were clenched at her sides, shaking. As Spy raised his cigarette to his lips, Fem-Spy did something that surprised herself. She smacked the cigarette out of his hand.

As the slender tube fell to the tile floor, Spy watched it with a bothered glare. He looked up at Fem-Spy over his exceedingly French nose. "Do not make me angry _Mademoiselle_."

Then she slapped him.

At that moment, Fem-Spy didn't care what consequences were to her actions. Spy had a higher ranking the she did, because of his time on the base and his gender, and in retrospect Fem-Spy considered he could have done something terrible to her. But at that time, she just didn't care.

She had barely lowered her arm before Spy moved towards her. Fem-Spy suddenly felt afraid of her position. The expression on Spy's face was one she couldn't quite place. She took a step back and felt her back press against the wall. She didn't realize how close she was to it.

Spy reached out toward Fem-Spy. She shut her eyes in fearful preparation for whatever he would do. There was a moment's pause. When nothing happened, Fem-Spy tentatively opened her eyes. That was when Spy did something absolutely astounding. He did something so ridiculous and completely crazy Fem-Spy could hardly believe it.

He kissed her.

It was a simply motion. Not rough, just a small piece of physical contact. He touched her arm as he brought his face to hers, closing his eyes as he did so. His lips were surprisingly soft. He tasted like cigarettes and some kind of cheap breath mint. In the brief moments their bodies were connected, Fem-Spy felt elated in a way she hadn't in months. Her heart began pounding, her face felt hot. But all too soon it was over. The kiss was very short and very, very sweet. As soon at Spy pulled away, Fem-Spy felt herself getting lightheaded. She blinked several times to try and regain her senses.

"W-what was zhat for?" She asked breathlessly.

Spy shrugged and tucked his hands into his pockets. "Because I wanted to."

Fem-Spy's head was spinning. Was that really his answer? Could he blow off such an action with just that? Spy was the one who said relationships in the workplace were a poor idea after all.

Fem-Spy pressed her tongue to the inside of her cheek. "Well zhen," she said with an air of defiance. "Allow me to do something I've wanted to do for a long time."

Again, Fem-Spy wasn't thinking straight. In one fluid motion, she reached out and grabbed the lapels of Spy's jacket and pulled him toward her. As he was being pulled forward, Fem-Spy turned her head, closed her eyes and crushed her mouth into his. The second time was even better. At first Spy's mouth was firm with shock. As his surprise faded, his mouth softened and he wound his arm around her back. Fem-Spy kept her hands clasped on Spy's jacket as she felt his arms embrace her. She moved her mouth slightly and felt Spy move with her. It was a wonderful feeling. She parted her lips ever so slightly, and she felt a foreign tongue upon them. She smiled and allowed him entrance.

After a few more moments, they broke apart. Fem-Spy took as few deep breaths as she glanced up to Spy's eyes. She saw he was slightly taller than her, and for some reason it didn't bother her.

"A long time?" Spy said with a smirk.

"You started it," Fem-Spy couldn't help but smile.

Then they began again, cloaked in the darkness of the RED hallway. Spy began with a light caress her face. Another soft kiss was the initiator. Fem-Spy felt a leather gloved hand sneak under the hem of her mask. It didn't seem treacherous, so she said nothing. The hand crept farther up the back of her neck, gentle and slow. Spy removed himself from Fem-Spy's mouth and travelled downward. There was a moment of uncertainty and then the warm feeling of Spy pressed himself to her neck. Fem-Spy gave a pleasure filled moan. She couldn't help it. Spy proceeded to decorate her neck in kisses and licks of a most professional nature.

It was the smallest thing that brought the pair out of their romantic stupor. The creak of a pipe was as loud as a scream in the sleepy base. The two Spies both turned their heads to the end of the hallway, as if someone had rudely interrupted them. There was a pause and heavy breathing from both of them. Them Fem-Spy pulled her arms away. Spy retracted much slower. They stared at each other.

"Well," Fem-Spy started, feeling her face flush. "It is late."

Spy didn't say anything. He stood, jaw clenched, looking at her. Fem-Spy pressed her lips together and gave a brisk nod. She turned on her heel and began walking to her room. There was no sound of receding footsteps. Fem-Spy slowed her pace to a crawl. Still no other footsteps.

Then a pair of arms wrapped themselves around her middle.

"You didn't zhink you'd get away zhat easily, _ma cheri_?"

Fem-Spy grinned like a mad woman. She was surprised as Spy practically carried her to his room. It was awkward, being half lifted down the hallway, but the sensual adrenaline quelled the poor feelings. When they reached Spy's room, he kicked the door open and nearly threw her inside. He barely had time to lock the door before she pounced on his back. Winding her arms around to his chest, she hurriedly undid the buttons of his jacket. He turned to face her. Fem-Spy grabbed his red tie and pulled him close.

There was a frenzy of cloth and hands. Spy worked his way out of his jacket and tore off his gloves. Fem-Spy helped enthusiastically, trying to get her arms out of her own pinstriped suit. Somehow, both pairs of shoes, gloves and jackets made their way to the wooden floor. Spy roughly guided her to his bed, and they collapsed in a heap. Fem-Spy hastily undid the buttons on Spy's shirt, desperate to get more of him. She inhaled the smell of his snooty, French cologne, loving every bit of it. She may know almost nothing about him, but that didn't mean she couldn't love him.

As she was lying on top of him, she felt Spy grab the back of her left knee and hitch up her leg. She grinned amidst the kissing. That was when she felt the hand back under the hem of her mask. Again, she said nothing. It was when the hand, which was rough with calluses, brushed against her chin she panicked. She threw herself backwards, off Spy and onto the bed.

Spy looked genuinely surprised. He slowly sat up, his shirt undone and missing buttons. Fem-Spy clutched her hand to her chest, breathing deep.

"Did I do something wrong?" Spy asked tentatively.

"My mask," Fem-Spy said slowly. "You tried to remove my mask."

Spy raised his eyebrows incredulously. "Really now? I 'ave seen you without a mask before. It's not a bad sight, if I may say so."

Fem-Spy held back a smile. "What about you? Would you let me take off your mask?"

There was a pause. "Of course," said Spy.

Fem-Spy smiled a scornful smile. "You're lying again _Monsieur_."

"I zhink I am," Spy said in an detached tone, folding his arms over his stomach.

There was another pause.

"Spy, I want to do zhis," Fem-Spy said. "But if I do, I need to trust you."

"You can, _ma cheri_."

"'Ow do I know?" Fem-Spy suddenly felt bitter about her occupation. "You are a Spy, by your nature I shouldn't trust anything you say."

Spy didn't say anything. Instead he unfolded his arms and sat up. "'Ow can I prove it to you?"

"By showing me what's under your mask?"

Spy gave a chuckle. "_Je suis désolé, ma cheri_, but I would prefer not."

Fem-Spy sheepishly cast her eyes downward. She had an idea, but there was no way she could say it. Just for once, she wanted something in this Hellish environment to be solved with words and thought, as opposed blood and bullets, guns and knives. After almost four months of simply fighting to stay alive, Fem-Spy wanted a simple human comfort that wouldn't hurt her (at least more then he already had). It amazed her really. After all she had done to act professional and polished, she couldn't deny herself the need of another human being who understood her. It astonished and sickened her.

Spy pushed himself up and leaned toward her across the bed. He delicately caressed her arm with his spindly fingers.

"Masks on?"

He caught on fast. Fem-Spy grinned with the absurdity of the idea. "_Oui_, masks on zhen."

Spy sacrificed a smile as well. He leaned toward her and placed a kiss on her waiting lips. She responded enthusiastically.

From then on, the night just got better.

* * *

_I'm not writing sex. You guys can just imagine what happens next._

_Please rate & review, every time you critique and comment, an angel gets it's wings!_


	20. A Long Morning

_Howdy y'all. School has been kicking my ass lately, I really don't have any other excuse for being so late, so I'm not going to make one up. I'm sure you can relate._

_Ragna89: Thank you! Yes, they were trying to 'keep it professional', if it could be possible in that situation._

_general-tommy: Ehh, I really hoped the relationship wouldn't be so surprising as they been together for quite some time now. Though the physical portion of the relatioship was quite sudden, I'll admit. Heat of the moment, I think I'd call it._

_krazykiki: Thank you so much! :D_

_maxrider1: Thank you! I'm glad there are people rooting for the Spy's relatioship._

_kappy-and-tea: Thank you for the compliments. :3 I'll do my best to make this an ejoyable story for all you guys!_

_The Black Fool: Girlish infatuation is the best kind. :P Thank you for the kind words!_

_IHaveSpyCrabs: Thank you lots. Personally, I just can't bring myself to write smut and stuff. I'm glad my lighter approach to these emotions came off well. :)_

_gozieson: Ah! Should there be a warning? My bad, I may add one. -.-; I have been looking at your story, and I have been interested, but I have had little time for writing as well as reading. Keep pumping out material, and I will read it eventually! D:_

_some1udontkno: Review theif! Joking, you can steal the special review spots if you want to. xD Let's see some of your stuff posted soon, eh?_

_CubieChellPandaxD: I agree! xD Well, let's hope for the best..._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page. _

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Fem-Spy couldn't remember the last time she had been woken by the sunlight. So many times she had risen to dark mornings and quiet neighbourhoods, to go to work at one of her many jobs or even come home from them. She was used to greeting the day with a black sky, making coffee before the birds even began to sing. Now, for the first time in she didn't know how long, she blinked and felt her eyes forced open by the rays of a certain star penetrating the Earth's atmosphere. Fem-Spy opened her eyes completely to find herself staring at a plain wooden ceiling. The bed she was occupying was warm, even as she noticed her lack of clothing. She turned her head to see a familiar balaclava clad face, still fast asleep. She smiled softly. His arm was wrapped around her, supporting her head, with his fingers brushing her back.

Fem-Spy sat up, careful not to wake her sleeping partner. She yanked the covers off her body, shivering with the rush of cool morning air. For a few moments, she pulled her knees up to her chest and sat in that crouched position, staring at Spy. She watched his chest rise and fall, his pectorals and abdomen dotted with scars and burns, both big and small. His arms were especially bad. Fem-Spy remembered back to a few months ago when he had a particularly nasty run in with a Pyro. Now she saw he had never completely healed.

The ugly damage done to his body was interrupted at his neck. The dark red fabric of his balaclava was a sharp contrast to the faded pinks and browns of the old wounds. Fem-Spy carefully lifted a finger and traced a particularly large gash that stretched across Spy's chest, from the middle of his rib cage to his right shoulder. She wondered if he got the cut when he was a novice, maybe de-cloaking to close to an enemy Sniper or being a victim to a broken Scrumpy bottle. She shivered at all the possibilities of the wound.

Spy stirred and Fem-Spy sharply retracted her hand. She stared for a few more moments, and then tore her gaze away from Spy's sleeping form. She glanced around the room. In the darkness of last night, she hadn't been able to take in all the details of the small living space. Now in the daylight, she saw it was very similar to her own, if a bit fancier. The bed was pushed against the far wall, a night table stood next to it. A dresser occupied the wall next to the door, and a small desk stole the rest of the floor space. A few obscure paintings of miscellaneous landscapes were hung on the walls.

Fem-Spy raised herself off the bed (luckily she was on the side facing the rest of the room) and dressed herself. Then she began to look around. The first thing she examined was the night table. There was a small, old clock sitting on it, hands pumping out the time steadily. It read 8:38 AM. For a moment, Fem-Spy nearly had a panic attack, thinking they had both missed the pre battle meeting and the beginning of the fight. After a second she remembered that today was a Sunday, and they were in a ceasefire. She nearly laughed out loud.

A closer inspection of the dresser showed it was full of at least seven red, pinstriped suits, with seven pairs of sleek leather shoes accompanying them. There was also a box in the back corner filled with folded balaclavas. She stood on her toes to look at the shelf above the line of suits. There she was a set carefully organized Spy gear. A pistol, an extra disguise kit, what looked like a golden pocket watch and two Invis watches. She grinned and plucked the newer looking watch from its place. Having been tormented over the files Spy had acquired, she felt it was acceptable for her to retrieve her watch. She was glad to have it back.

Next she examined the desk. It was cheap, probably provided by the base and covered with papers. Some were placed in neat piles, other lay haphazardly on the wooden surface or sticking out of the drawers, without any rhyme or reason as to why. Fem-Spy glanced over the mess. She recognized some as the recently gathered intelligence. Other smaller scraps looked like self memos and notes, written with a fountain pen in black ink.

She picked up a few of the notes. There were some written in both French and English, concerning various things like weapon maintenance, the Intel and the available television channels. Fem-Spy continued to scan the desk, until she saw a pile of folders half stuffed into a drawer. The folders were bright red. Carefully, she pulled open the drawer and pulled out the pile. There were names printed on each folder, all male and foreign to her. She flicked through them with lightning speed until she found something shocking. A familiar name. She own name. She drew out the folder and placed the rest of the pile back in the drawer. She opened the file. The first thing she saw horrified her. It was her employee picture from her job at the Central Intelligence Agency. She raised it to her eye level. It was only a few years ago, but God she looked young. She replaced the photo hastily. A few pages in she found a record of her previous homes and a brief history of her family life.

She didn't remember giving those to the Reliable Demolition Excavation. With a frown, she closed the folder. How could the company have information on her that she hadn't supplied? Maybe there were more Spies employed at RED then just on the battlefield.

Fem-Spy held the pile of papers for several seconds. What she had with Spy, whatever it was, was something she had yearned for so long. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so good and safe, just being in the presence of another person. She flicked her head back to the direction of the bed. Spy was still asleep, one arm drooping over the side of the bed, the other lonely without her form curled beside him. She let herself give in to a small smile.

Then she tucked the file under her arm and made her way to the door. She was used to leaving bedrooms early anyway, before the other occupant had woken. As she turned the handle, she thought of something. If Spy had been amassing a collection of his team's files, would he have his own? Fem-Spy looked back over her shoulder to the cluttered desk. There was a possibility. But how would she know which file was his? She didn't even know his name.

Fem-Spy bit her lip. Who was she kidding? She wasn't stupid. She was almost positive she could identify who Spy was in those files. A white European man, with a distinct nose, jaw and cheekbones. A most likely scattered background, but employed at RED the longest of any Spy. She could find out who he was with those basic facts and a picture. That's what she was trained to do.

But did she want to? For the longest time Spy had been a mystery, and enigma to her. She hadn't known anything personal about him. Maybe that's what drew her to him. His identity was a challenge to her. If she removed that challenge, would she want to be with him? It scared her to thinks she wouldn't. He was a nameless employee just like her, a miscellaneous Spy. But he was her Spy.

Fem-Spy pulled her face away from the desk. Clutching her own file she unlocked the room door, taking one last look at Spy's sleeping form before quietly slipping into the empty hallway.

* * *

An hour later, Fem-Spy was drying her hair viciously with a towel. The empty bathroom and hot shower she had taken was a God send after she escaped Spy's room. Most of the team was eating breakfast or enjoying the opportunity to sleep in. Fem-Spy pulled her hair into a tight bun at the nape of her neck. Maybe she would sit in her room reading, and let it dry naturally for once.

As she reached for her crisp white shirt, she caught a glance of herself in the bathroom mirror. What she saw made her stare. The woman in the mirror was one she barely recognized. She stood in her bra and pinstriped pants, examining the unfamiliar body she occupied. She was skinny, perhaps too skinny, with overly pronounced cheekbones high on her face. She leaned in for a closer examination of her face. There were bags under her eyes from so many sleepless nights worrying about what the next day would bring. Her long nose, which she felt always felt self conscious about, seemed to protrude in an unsightly manner. She pressed a finger against it, in a vain attempt to push it back into her face. She noticed her rough, sinewy hands adorned with tiny fingernails. She turned her hand over and looked at her arms. Both were taught and muscular, built up from weeks of backstabbing.

Fem-Spy closed her eyes and swallowed hard. She felt almost scared. These last few months had changed her, mentally as well physically. She had always known this war would change her and now that she was seeing the effects, it made her wonder why she had joined.

Trying to discard the thought, she then buttoned up her white dress shirt. She grabbed and put on her jacket and mask, seated on the edge of a bench protruding from the wall and exited the bathroom.

As she did she came face to face with Sniper.

"Ah, sorry Spoih," he gave a toothy grin. "Didn't see ya up early this mornin'. Have a good sleep?"

"Not exactly," Fem-Spy tried not to laugh.

"Awright then," he made to walk past Fem-Spy, but stopped.

"Something zee matter?" asked Fem-Spy.

"Nothing much, jus'..." Sniper looked apprehensive. "Have ya seen Spy 'round anywhere?"

Fem-Spy bit her lip. "Not since yesterday, no. If I see 'im, I will tell 'im zhat you are looking for 'im."

"Yeh, that would be great," Sniper's gazed lingered on Fem-Spy for a moment too long.

"Something zee matter?" Fem-Spy asked.

"Nothin', I jus' haven't seen Spy as 'o late," Sniper turned his head away. "He's been 'round you a lot, I've seen."

Fem-Spy tried to look taken aback. "What?

"He's jus' been hangin' 'round you a lot. Not savin' time for the rest 'o us."

"Well, zhat should be something you should speak with 'im about Sniper." Fem-Spy tried to walk past him. Sniper grabbed her arm. His touch was rough, no like she had remembered.

"Just be careful Spoih, he ain't what he seems."

"And you're zee one saying 'e was your friend not so long ago."

"Can't a man change his opinion?"

"Not about 'is friends, I 'ope."

The silence was brief.

"Awright, do whateva ya want. I ain't gonna help ya when 'e does somethin' awful."

Sniper dropped Fem-Spy's arm and pushed past her to the sinks. Fem-Spy saw him take off his hat and sun glasses and turned on the tap. He ran his hands under it for a moment, before cupping the water and splashing it onto his face. He then placed both his hands on the sink basin, and leaned heavily. His posture was one of a defeated man. Fem-Spy dropped her jacket and walked toward Sniper. She placed her hand on his shoulder. She tried to think of why Sniper would be acting this way. She had an idea, but it was so absurd, it might be true. Still questioning herself, she took a shot in the dark.

"Do you love 'im?"

The speed with which Sniper wheeled around scared her. He pushed himself off the sink and thrust out his hands, grabbing her wrists. Fem-Spy gasped in surprise and tried to resist the instinct to throw her knee into his stomach.

"None 'o yer fuckin' business."

Fem-Spy felt scared. She had never felt like that around Sniper. Of all the people at the base, Sniper had always seemed like the kindest, and gentlest. He was no different than the rest of them however. Fem-Spy stared into the crazed eyes of the Australian hunter, hoping desperately that he would let go of her. She didn't care what happened, as long as she wasn't under the jurisdiction of his burning gaze.

It proved she was right, she reflected. Sniper was jealous, of her perhaps. He had feelings for Spy, which in her mind complicated everything. She suddenly felt guilty of her position last night. She considered Sniper her friend and what kind of friend was she to do this to him? Even in school, girls didn't interfere with love interest, lest they get ostracized by the rest of the group.

In her defence, she thought, she didn't know. It wasn't like Sniper explicitly told her any of his love troubles. None the less, she still felt responsible.

Sniper finally let her hands drop. As he did, his shoulders slumped and his head sunk down. He turned away and stumbled to the bench on the side of the room. He reached it and fell like a stone onto the wooden surface. He sat hunched over, with his legs wide and slowly brought his head to his hands.

Fem-Spy stood, unmoving. She carefully approached Sniper, watching him for any hostile movements. There were none. She sat next him and wrapped her arm around his shoulder. She felt his body shaking, taking deep shuddering breaths into his hands.

"_Je suis désolé_," Fem-Spy mumbled quietly.

* * *

_Don't know when the next part will be up. Soon, hopefully._

_It's also quite late as I'm uploading this, so if there are any mistakes, please let me know._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make double rainbows appear! (But what do they mean? D:)_


	21. Writing Letters

_I'm back, after a long unofficial hiatus. Y'all know how it is, I'm sure you do._

_gozieson: Thank you so much for all the compliments and comments. You're kinda right, I've been dead in the writing department. I've the rest of the story figured out, but it's getting it down on paper that's the hard part. But it's coming, I promise :)_

_krazykiki: In that case, I wish you as many double rainbows as I can :)_

_general-tommy: Ah, th only pairing I'm a fan of at all is Heavy/Medic. But in my head cannon, they're just all bros. I'm not huge of the idea that just because they're near each other they need to screw. No worries, no other pairing of such a nature will be explored in this story. Maybe they will eventually, but not here._

_maxrider1: Spy is quite a mystery. Maybe we'll find out more about him._

_The Black Fool: Thank you so much! It really lifts my spirits to get complients like this. But really, perverted stories can be quite enjoyable. xD_

_ChrisTheCat: Thanks for the point, I promies they're not boring. Fem-Sniper wasn't meant to talk much at all, though I did consider developing her more. I just ended up focusing on other characters, like the RED Medic. (I was sad to kill him off as well, don't get me wrong.)_

_This chapter was uploaded when I was super tired. All complaints should be sent to my school, because they are the ones doing this to me._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page. _

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Her hands were shaking as she made her tea.

Fem-Spy was in the RED kitchen, carefully dipping a bag of Lady Grey into a large, steaming mug. Less than half an hour ago, she had been sitting with Sniper in the locker room, stewing in her own guilt upon discovering his infatuation with Spy. He had sat unmoving for at least five minutes, before taking a deep breath and sitting up straight. His demeanour surprised Fem-Spy. When he looked at her his eyes were red and his face wet, but there was a smile plastered on top of his sorry features.

"Don't worry yer head 'bout me Spoih," he had said with almost a hint of cheeriness in his voice. "But if ya tell anyone, I'll wring yer bloody neck."

He had gotten up and left right after that, retrieving his hat and sun glasses from the sink on the way. Fem-Spy sat on the bench, alone and frightened. She was shocked by Sniper's sudden reaction and his change of moods. She tried to push it out of her mind. For the first time in a while she had been so happy, and now Sniper had made things difficult again. She couldn't help but feel bitter.

As she sat, she thought back to the head Medic when she confronted him. There was the same violent reaction and threats, the same anger at the reveal of one's true emotion. Fem-Spy had always categorized Sniper and Medic differently, as they both seemed like such different people. Sniper was kind and seemed gentle, while Medic was cold and cruel. However, they were both affected the same way by confrontation. Perhaps none of the men in the base were any different. Fem-Spy thought about Spy. If someone questioned him about his relationships in the base, would he lash out and deny any and all accusations? Would he knock the person to the ground, trace their jugular with his knife and ask why it was any of their goddamned business? Or would he accept anything that was thrown at him? Fem-Spy honestly couldn't say which option she would prefer.

She took her tea to the mess hall. On the way she stopped by her own room and grabbed some paper and a pen. She was going to write a letter home. Mail was delivered every month from family and friends to the current base the team occupied. Fem-Spy had received a letter in her second month, but had never written anything back. She already knew her godmother disapproved of her gallivanting around with men twice her age and the last thing she wanted in her home life was more tension. In this moment however, she needed somewhere to pour out her thoughts. She went to the mess hall, because she thought no one in their right mind would be there at this time of day. It was a ceasefire after all. People wanted to enjoy themselves.

Fem-Spy's hopes were correct. The mess hall was deserted. She slid onto a bench near the door and placed her pen and paper on the table. She took a swig from her still steaming mug, pick up her pen and stared at the paper.

She decided to start with a greeting. She wrote names at the top of the page, both her godmother and her godmother's son. She considered an opening greeting.

_I am writing from my work place and hope you are both well._

She paused for a moment and then crossed out the line. She didn't want to sound like a boring working-class girl, even though that's what her family thought she was. Part of RED's stipulation upon hiring her was that she must not tell anyone outside of the company what she did. Fem-Spy wasn't too keen on spreading the fact that she killed people, but the RED had seemed adamant about their secrecy.

_I miss you both dearly. I wish I could write to you sooner, but because of my work I have been moving around constantly._

She stared at the sentences and then crumpled up the piece of paper. She brushed it off the table and grabbed a clean sheet. She wrote the same two names on the top of the page. She leaned forward over the table and dropped her head in her hands, with elbows on the table top. She kept that pose for almost ten minutes, until she was interrupted by Fem-Scout.

"Hey Spy!" She called as she pushed open the door to the mess hall. Fem-Spy jumped slightly at the girl's entrance.

"'Ello Scout," She sighed and crumpled up the paper in front of her again. "Is zhere something I can 'elp you with?"

"Nah, not really. Watcha doin'?" Fem-Scout hoped over to the table and sat next to Fem-Spy.

"Nothing. Trying to write a letter home."

"Why ya doin' that?"

Fem-Spy sighed. "I 'aven't written zhem in a while. I'd like to inform them and let zhem know I'm still alive."

Fem-Scout laughed nervously. "Well, that's good. Yeah..." She stared at the paper. "Can I have a sheet? Like, to write on?"

"But of course," Fem-Spy picked up a piece of paper from the stack and her pen and handed it to Fem-Scout.

Fem-Scout and smiled. She immediately began writing, one name in a messy scrawl and then into the body of the letter. Fem-Spy watched as the young girl scratched away at the paper. She wrote and wrote for a good five minutes, filling almost the whole page. It was curious, seeing her so quiet and concentrating so much.

She paused to stretch her fingers and Fem-Spy handed her another piece of paper. Fem-Scout looked at her curiously.

"You can't write on zee back of zhat page," Explained Fem-Spy.

Fem-Scout looked at her a frowned. "Why not?" She said.

"It will look messy."

"My pa won't care."

"But I do."

Fem-Scout frowned again. "Alright, whateva." She snatched the paper from Fem-Spy's hand, slapped it down on the table and continued writing. Fem-Spy watched her for another minute and then spoke up.

"'Ow is it zhat you can write so much?"

"What?" Fem-Scout looked at her. "Oh, well it's not hard. So much crap's happened lately, I got a lot to write about."

Fem-Spy pulled a cigarette out of her silver case and stuck it in between her teeth. "Surely you can't be writing about everything that 'as 'appened. Some of it I zhink would, ah, worry your father."

"Well ah course I'm not writin' about... That stuff. Jus' about movin' around and my friends and stuff. Like you."

Fem-Spy had been fumbling for her lighter and nearly dropped it. "About me?" She asked, shocked.

"Ah course!" Fem-Scout said. She fiddled with the pen in her hand. "You're like, the only other girl here now. An' I've known ya since day one. I say we're friends."

Fem-Spy didn't know what to say. She had indeed known the girl since her first day on the job, and she defiantly considered them friends on some level. But hearing Fem-Scout say it aloud gave the idea some solidity, like drawing a picture from something in your head. It made it real. Fem-Spy felt overcome by a wave of emotion. She placed her lighter on the table without lighting her cigarette.

"Zhank you, Scout." Her eyes felt moist. She inhaled deeply through her nose to dispel tears.

* * *

Fem-Scout left shortly after, with a few more pages written, to mail away her letter.

Fem-Spy stayed behind to finish her own. In the end she wrote six pages. She left to lie down in her room before she handed over her letter to be mailed. Before she even did that, she went to the kitchen to drop off her dirty tea mug, and hopefully get a refill. She set a kettle on the stove and leaned on the counter, looking over her letter to home, her loopy writing flying across the pages. She was focusing so much on her papers that she barely noticed the puff of red smoke near the kitchen door. The next moment, the letter was snatched out of her hands.

She looked up to see Spy standing in front of her, a smug grin on his face and a cigarette in his lips.

"Writing your memoir?" He said, his tone beyond irritating.

"A letter," Fem-Spy grabbed the papers and set them on the counter behind her, "If you don't mind."

Spy held his hands up defensively. "Not at all _ma cheri_. I 'ardly ever mind."

Fem-Spy glared at him. The kettle began to whistle, and she moved it off the stove. Keeping an eye on her letter, which was sitting precariously on the counter, she moved to collect a new mug and a fresh tea bag from a cupboard. Spy did nothing but watch her the entire time, leaning on the edge of the counter with his arms folded. It was almost strange, she felt awkward in his presence. She had thought about what had happened with them and she felt she needed to say something. When she had poured the steaming water and deposited the tea bag, she turned to face him. She could barely grasp something to say.

"Is zhere something you want, _Monsieur_ Spy?"

"Not at all," Spy raised his hands defensively. "I just zhought to, ah, check up on you."

"Why? I don't need to be watched like a child," Fem-Spy checked on her tea, turning her back to Spy.

"I would 'ope not." There was a moment's silence, then Fem-Spy felt hands wrap around her waist and Spy's chin on her shoulder. "Because you certainly do not act like a child."

Fem-Spy bit her lip hard. It would be difficult to say what she had to next, but she had given it a lot of thought. She carefully swivelled in Spy's grip to face him. Their faces were inches apart. She placed a firm hand on his chest and pushed.

"Please _Monsieur_," She said. "We cannot do zhis."

Spy looked confused. "And why not? As I recall, you seemed most intrigued at perusing a... Relationship, shall we say?" He cracked a smile. "Or was zhat not what you were looking for?"

Fem-Spy tried to push him away, with two hands on his chest now. "We will get in trouble."

"'Oo cares?"

"I do! It was you zhat told me I was part of a trial! I will not put the future possible employees of zhis company into jeopardy because of you."

Spy chuckled darkly. "Zhis company... Zee REDs. Zhey are nothing. Believe me _ma cheri_, I have found out zhings about zhis company zhat would make your pretty little toes curl."

Fem-Spy felt her face flush. "It doesn't matter!" She pushed Spy with more force. He wouldn't let her go. "Zhis is wrong. I am not just another secretary for the working men to amuse themselves with. I will not become what I 'ave tried so 'ard to resist!"

She thrust her weight toward Spy, and he wheeled back from her, stumbling across the kitchen. He straightened his suit and looked at her. His eyes were deep, and seemed almost sad.

"Is zhat what you zhink? Zhat I zhought of you as only a lowly secretary?" His voice raised in volume slightly. "Zhat nothing we 'ad done was worth anything?"

"Well it wasn't, was it?" Fem-Spy felt her lip quivering. She tried to stop it. "What kind of life could we 'ave in zhis place anyway? Anyone of us could die tomorrow, you said it yourself!" She snatched her letter from the counter top, crumpling the pages. "I don't want any more loss in my life. Living here is 'ard enough."

Spy moved toward her to touch her arm. "Even if we may not live after tomorrow, wouldn't it be better to live it 'appily? To be 'appy?"

Fem-Spy felt a pain in her chest as she heard the words. She did want to be happy. It wasn't _her_ fault she was battling death every day. She had realized couldn't compromise her survival with anything.

She moved away towards the door, her letter gripped tightly in her hand. When she reached the door, she placed her hand on the handle and paused. She turned her head ever so slightly, not so much that she was looking at Spy, but enough so he could see her.

"I'm sorry I can't make you 'appy."

And then she left. After the door swung closed, she heard a crash of dishes hitting the floor. She couldn't imagine what Spy had done.

It was only when she was halfway to her room that she remembered her tea.

* * *

_Aha, we all forget things sometimes. We can't blame her._

_And if you don't completely follow Fem-Spy's train of thought on the subject of her relationship with Spy, I don't blame you._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make me dream sweeter dreams!_


	22. Figuring Things out

_Hey guys. I haven't forgot about this, I swear. I did for a while. That and a case of writers block didn't help me. Have some short, touchy fluff as a (weak) comeback. It's almost over though, so I really should get this done. I have another fanfiction in the works, but it may not come to fruition any time soon._

_Anywho, enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

The morning was dismal. Grey clouds covered the horizon like a blanket. Fem-Spy leaned on her window sill, her cheek pressed against the cold glass. It looked like there could be a storm, or at least a drizzle. The weather made her want to get out of bed even less. After her bicker with Spy, she had done nothing but avoid him for the whole week. She lifted her face off the window, the condensation of her breath fogging the glass. She went to retrieve her cigarette case, which was on her nightstand. She needed her fix, badly. Fem-Spy drew out a cigarette and moved to her mirror. She looked at her long, lank hair with distain. It was then that the calendar on the wall caught her eye. Fem-Spy had never been one to plan things in advance, so what she saw was something she was not prepared for. Her contract was ending in a little over a week.

She stared for a moment, unblinking, and digested the information. If she could stay alive for the next week, she could complete this stupid trial run and open doors for women at RED. She would be able to go home and see her family, her friends. Fem-Spy bit her lip. She may never see the people here again. She would never see Fem-Scout, or Sniper, or Spy.

Sighing, she stuck her cigarette in her mouth and lit it. She grabbed her comb from her night table and began to brush her hair into its usual tight bun. Something about the motions made her feel grounded. She looked at her hair as a measure of her time at the base. It was always long, but never this long, down past her shoulders to the middle of her back. She gathered it slowly, pulling it tight at the nape of her neck. After her hair was out of her face, she tied it tight, being wary of any strands that might have fallen out. There were none. She pressed her hair closer to her scalp, carefully touching her perfectly formed hair bun.

She took a deep breath and leaned on her dresser, still staring into the mirror. The bags under her eyes seemed more prominent than ever before. She pressed her hands to her face and pulled back the skin on her cheeks. It didn't make her look any better. She pouted and let her face go. She felt so odd, like the past months had aged her in years.

This is not the way she expected any of her jobs to be ending. A simple letter of resignation or storming out of her office would be the way she expected to go. Maybe she would be asked to stay on. Would she want to? At least she didn't have to make this decision now.

Fem-Spy glanced at her clock, realizing she was going to be late for breakfast. She dressed quickly and spit out her cigarette, pulling on her jacket as she walked out the door. She was so focused on straightening her lapels, she barely noticed as she bumped into a Pyro.

"Ah, _pardon_," she said, trying to figure out which Pyro this was. The red, flame retardant suit squeaked as its arms shot up and embraced Fem-Spy in a rough hug. It must be her friend the Pyro. She gave a small smile as what was exposed of her face was pressed against the rubbery material of his suit.

"'Ello Pyro," she gasped for breath, while trying to gently push herself away. "Are you alright?"

"MmmHrrmm!" Pyro drew away and clasped his hands together. "Hrrrwww rrrh yooo?"

Fem-Spy sighed heavily. "Ah, I am getting by. 'Ow are you?"

"Rrmmm frrrn. Brrrt yrrr ndddds trrr buuhh crrrrfuulll," Pyro waggled his finger in front of her face. Fem-Spy blinked and suddenly Pyro spun on his heel and raced down the hallway, leaving her standing with her mouth slightly open at the strange exchange. She shook her head clear and continued down the hallway to the Supply room. Pyros were so strange. She felt they often knew more then they said, or could communicate at least.

The Supply room was its usual hustle and bustle before a day of fighting. She quickly found her ammunition and settled to wait for the battle to begin. Before she could light a cigarette, she was approached by Fem-Scout.

"Hey Spy!" she announced her presence. "How ya been?"

"Nothing to complain about," Spy clicked her lighter to set the small device alight. She brought the flame carefully to her face, touching the tip to the white tube. Fem-Scout seemed momentarily mesmerized by the fire, watching it catch light on Fem-Spy's cigarette.

"Zhere something you want?" Fem-Spy asked briskly, clicking her lighter shut.

"Uh, nah. Just sayin' hi," Fem-Scout shuffled her feet. "You've been kinda quiet lately. I was wonderin' if ya were alright."

"I am fine." Fem-Spy stated briskly.

There was an awkward pause. Fem-Scout rushed to fill it.

"'Cause I was lookin' at my calendar, and I saw we gotta leave soon," the words tumbled out of her mouth. "And to be honest I don't really know if I wanna go. Even though we're killin' people, I like it here. I like you and... Other people."

Fem-Spy exhaled slowly. Could Fem-Scout read her mind? The date seemed to be on more minds then just hers.

"It does not bother me Scout," she almost snapped. "I 'ave noticed zhis as well." She let her eyes drift towards Franz, who was strapping on his Medipack at the far end of the room.

"Well," Fem-Scout said hurriedly, "I just wanna leave here knowing I don't have any regrets."

Fem-Spy tried not to give a sniff of annoyance. With finding out she only had a week of work left here, she really hasn't in the mood for a confession of inner feelings. There was too much on her plate to worry about this right now. Fem-Scout did have a point, though. She didn't want to leave her place at RED with regrets. Her mind drifted to Spy as her eyes drifted around the room. The hustle and bustle of preparing for the day gave the impression everyone was blissfully unaware of any difficulties between the team and its occupants. As her eyes continued to move around the room she spotted Sniper, cleaning his rifle. Her mind once again settled on her regrets. Without a word, she began to walk towards him. She was vaguely aware Fem-Scout was saying something to her, but ignored it. She reached Sniper and stood next to him for several seconds before he noticed her. When he did, he didn't acknowledge her besides a grunt and a shrug.

"'Ello Sniper," Fem-Spy said slowly. Another grunt was his reply.

"Listen Sniper," Fem-Spy began. "I know you may not be 'appy with me and at zhis point, I don't really care." Sniper paused in his cleaning.

"I am leaving zhis base in a week. I am sure you are aware of that. You are a clever man. Now, I know nothing I say will undo any of zee zhings zhat 'ave 'appened 'ere, nor will zhey soften any blow you may want strike at me." She paused for breath.

"But I don't want to leave zhis place with any regrets," She said all in a rush. "I 'ave already seen men lose zhemselves to passion and despair. I do not wish for you to do zee same."

Sniper blinked at her behind his tinted sunglasses. He removed them and rubbed the bridge of his nose between his fingers.

"Now look Shelia," He said. "As much as I'd love to have ya fully supportin' me, I know what ya've gotten up to with Spy."

Fem-Spy felt her face twitch. "I am not apologizing for my actions," She said stiffly. "I would simply like to say, I do not want you doing anything foolish on the battlefield because of something I may 'ave cause in the base."

Sniper smirked and rubbed the back of his neck. "Think I'm gonna end up like Engie?" Fem-Spy tried to keep the look of surprise off her face. He laughed out loud. "Don't take me for that much o' a clown Spoih. No disrespect to Engie, but I'm not sleepin' with anyone. My stakes aren't that high."

Spy-Fem searched to find the breath to respond. "Well zhat is good," She said lamely.

Sniper smirked again. "But tell me Spoih, why are ya pushin' 'im away?"

"'E told you?" Fem-Spy tried to mask the shock in her voice.

"The bugger talks to me, you and the other Spies. Not much choice in conversation topics," said Sniper. "Though 'e does talk 'bout you a lot. Gets damn insufferable, really."

Fem-Spy's face flushed. "I don't know what to say."

"S'alright Spoih," Sniper gave her a small smile. "I don't hate ya or nothin'. I jus' needed some time to cool off s'all."

"If you say so Sniper," Fem-Spy finally shot him a smile.

"That's more loik it!" Sniper stood and patted her on the back. "But be honest luv, I've seen some o' his scars in th' doc's office. Does 'e really have one high up on 'is thigh?" He made a gesture toward his own crotch. "I can imagine it moight make things awkward."

Fem-Spy felt herself bite her lips, not out of concern, but for the feeling of simply mischief and gossip. "Well, no," she suppressed a giggle. "If it did we would not be 'aving zhis conversation right now."

They both laughed. The warning bell sounded to signal the beginning of the match. Fem-Spy wiped tears forming at the corners of her eyes, and she didn't know if they were from happiness or relief. Sniper wasn't angry at her, or at least not as angry as she thought he was. That in itself was something to make her feel much better. It felt as though a weight had been lifted off her.

Sniper clapped her on the shoulder as he picked up his rifle. "I got yer back today Spoih," he said to her. "Make us proud, awright?"

Fem-Spy felt a smile stretch across her face. "_Oui Monsieur_. I will do my best."

They left each other with a grin. Fem-Spy readied herself by the door, looking forward to the fight. She would make this last week at RED worth it.

* * *

_Almost there guys. Stick with me a little longer._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make my day a bit happier!_


	23. Falling

_This is totaly more frequent, right? Well I'm trying, as the story's coming to a close._

_FeeCopyPapers: We're almost at the end! Hold out a little longer._

_krazykiki: I've got new ones, now worries. :)_

_goldykat: Aw, I'd never forget about you guys. :P Yeah, I'm not exactly proud of the last chapter, in fact I have a feeling the ending of this will be kind of awkward. We'll hope for the best._

_gozieson: Haha, the bitter end? I'd hope it's not bitter, but as for a good resolution, we'll see._

_general-tommy: Thanks for the formating tips. It does look weird, I think I'll go back and change it._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page. _

* * *

The day was hot as Hell. Fem-Spy felt it even as she ran down to the Intel room, in case of any early charges by the BLU team. There was an awkward moment where she passed Spy as he exited the Supply room. He simply looked at her before cloaking and vanishing from her eyes. She tried to shake it off and continued to the Intel room. Fem-Spy wanted to apologize to him for the way she had acted. In retrospect, she didn't want him to be angry with her. As she had done with Sniper, who curiously enough seemed perfectly fine with her, she didn't want to leave any regrets. She stayed and observed the Engineers setting up their machines, letting out occasional puffs on her cigarette. When they finished, Fem-Spy decided to venture out into the courtyard. There was another Engineer set up and some of the artillery getting ready for an attack. She saw Franz in the group and waved her down.

"Frau Spy," he called. "Vould you be so kind as to sap a set of BLU dispensers across ze bridge?"

"I would love to _Monsieur_," she gave him a quick bow. She was about to turn, before Franz grabbed her arm.

"Be careful Frau Spy, zere are many BLU's out zere."

"I will be careful Franz, you know me." Fem-Spy gave a daring wink before departing. She though she heard Franz calling to her again, but ignored it. She didn't know what was wrong with her, why she certainly was in such a good mood, but she wasn't complaining.

Fem-Spy ran down the RED wooden hallway and cloaked before she dashed outside. There was almost no one in the courtyard, save for the Snipers on each side and a single BLU Engineer on the right side of the base entrance. She spied him as a threat and began to advance on him. It was then a few BLU Demomen and Scouts rushed out toward the bridge. Still cloaked, she pressed herself to the side of the bridge careful to avoid the edge of the water. She was not the mood to get her suit wet. The group passed her and she saw one Scout take a bullet to the shoulder. It barely slowed him, however. Fem-Spy felt torn as she watched the men dash inside her base, wanting to go and help.

'_Ah, the sentries will get them,'_ she thought almost maliciously. She quickly made her way to just inside the BLU base, slipped on a Medic disguise and de-cloaked before she rounded the corner back outside.

"Ah, Engineer," she said. "Did the men run in already?"

The Engineer made a disgusted noise. "They're already in there. Damn fools. Shoulda waited for you."

Fem-Spy gave a brief nod. She carefully withdrew a sapper from her jacket pocket. He only had a Dispenser and a level two Sentry. She had to keep him talking to stay distracted, if she could sap his sentry, then taking care of one unsuspecting Engineer would be no problem. She shifted behind the Engineer as he inspected his machines. She attached the sapper to the Sentry and stepped back as the BLU man whipped around.

"Spy!" He roared, slamming his wrench on the Sentry. Fem-Spy flicked out her knife with a click and thrust it into the Engineer's back. He gave a small cry and fell to the ground, his wrench sliding away in the dirt. Fem-Spy waited a moment before she reached to retrieve her knife. As she did she examined the wound. Not as clean or as straight as she would have liked, but it did the job. She glanced at the sparking Sentry still sitting in the front of the BLU base. With one swift movement she lifted her foot and kicked the metal monster over. The pain in her toe was nothing in comparison to the feeling of elation as the Sentry crumpled to the ground. She smiled as she placed a sapper on the Dispenser before slipping back to her own base.

She turned into the courtyard and saw the group she left had grown in size. Franz was at its front. He spotted him and gave him a small nod. He grinned and shouted, "_Los Weiter_!"

The group of REDs cheered and charged for the door. Fem-Spy flattened herself against the wall to avoid being trampled; deciding bringing up the rear would be a better idea. As she joined with the crowd, she saw Spy. With a moment of hesitation she moved toward him, picking her way through the still running REDS.

"_Monsieur!_" She called to him. Spy turned to the sound of his name and she could swear his expression flicked to a smile. By the time she was next to him however, it was fixed in a plain, determined expression.

"Well done on eliminating zee machines," he said briskly. Fem-Spy tried a smile. She found she could barely lift her face to his.

"_Merci_," she said. They ran in silence until they were across the bridge. When they reached the front of the BLU base, Spy stopped and Fem-Spy nearly tripped over him.

"_Mademoiselle,_" Spy began. "I would love to reconcile, but I don't believe zhis is zee best place."

Fem-Spy felt herself blush. "A-alright, after zee match zhen?"

Spy shot her a smirk. "I believe I could manage zhat." By now they had entered the first hallway in the BLU base. Spy gave her a nod and disappeared toward the intelligence. Fem-Spy ducked into the courtyard, following the majority of her team. She didn't want too many Spies in the Intel room, for fear of something going wrong. She used the doorframe and a nearby Heavy as cover and pulled out her pistol. There were so many people in the small space that it was difficult to get a clear shot. The fighting continued until the REDs made a push for the stairs, towards the BLU Supply room. Fem-Spy hung back, hoping to catch any stragglers. She waited until her whole team and come and gone, standing in the courtyard like some lonely sentinel. She smiled to herself. She was on her own again, just like always.

Fem-Spy began to walk up the BLU steps when she heard a yell from above her. She readied her gun at the door. After a few seconds, Franz came barrelling out of the doorway, clutching his arm.

"Spy!" He yelled at her, trying to turn down the stairs. He missed a step and fell, tumbling down until he stopped in front of Fem-Spy's feet, breathing hard.

"Franz," Fem-Spy knelt down and slung his arm around her neck. "What 'appened?"

"Nozzing." He panted. "Ze rest of ze team is pushing forward, ve almost have zem trapped." He coughed violently. "Zere vas a Medic, she chased me. I ran. I zought I lost her, but..." He trailed off.

Fem-Spy bit her lip. "Let's go." She helped him toward the exit, when she heard footsteps on the stairs. She whipped her head toward the noise.

"Vere are you little _Schätzchen_? I know you're in here!"

Fem-Spy froze and looked at Franz. He looked terrified. "Hide, Franz." Fem-Spy heard her voice crack slightly. He nodded vigorously. As quickly as they could, the pair somewhat limped out to the hallway of the BLU base. She glanced around and finding no cover, continued to move. They both moved outside the base, where the bridge was still deserted. The body and broken machines of the BLU Engineer was off to their left. Fem-Spy squinted across the field toward the RED base. With a feeling of dread, she saw a BLU Heavy walking into her base. There was no way they could get into the base without running into the enemy, unless he made it all the way to the Intel, which she didn't hope for.

Fem-Spy bit her lip and glanced around the empty area. There was no one else out here and they had to hurry unless they wanted the female Medic to find them. She looked down at Franz. His breathing was laboured and his eyes were closed tight in pain.

"Franz," said Fem-Spy. "Can you swim?"

Franz blinked and looked at her in shock. "Vell, yes Frau Spy. May I ask why?"

Fem-Spy tried to smile. "I believe zee only way to make it to zee base unharmed will be zhrough zee sewers."

Franz took a deep breath and suppressed a chuckle. "You vould come up vith somezing like zis."

"If you would like to take a stroll with zee BLU 'Eavy, be my guest."

Franz tried to straighten up. "Alright zen."

Fem-Spy helped him to the edge of the water. Franz looked over the edge into the clear water and swallowed hard. "Are you sure zis is ze best idea, Frau Spy?"

Fem-Spy rolled her eyes and grabbed Franz by the waist. "Franz?" The boy looked at her. "'Old your breath."

With one swift motion she threw him over the edge into the moat below. Franz hit the water with a large splash and took a few seconds before he came up for air, shaking his sodden hair out of his face. Fem-Spy smiled as she heard him cursing in German, but eventually beginning to swim to the RED sewer pipe with his good arm. Fem-Spy continued to watch him until he was safe, all the while pulling a disguise out of her cigarette case. She landed on a Medic disguise and slipped it on, hoping to jump back into the fray in the enemy base. She saw Franz disappear into the tunnel and was about to turn around when she heard the sound of a shotgun being cocked. She froze in position.

"Turn around." The voice was rough and ragged. Fem-Spy slowly turned on her heel to face the BLU base. It took her a second to locate the source of the voice. She looked down to see the BLU Engineer she thought was dead. There was blood dripping from his mouth and his face was pale and drenched in sweat. The loaded shotgun was clenched in his shaking hands, slightly propped on his hip. Fem-Spy saw his brow furrow as he stared at her. "Medic? That you?"

"Of course it's me Engineer." She tried to sound authoritative.

The Engineer slightly lowered his gun. He looked like he was going to fall over. "It it's not too much trouble, I'd like a heal."

Fem-Spy was taken aback. Why would a suffering teammate, _ask_ for a heal? It suddenly dawned on her that Medic disguised she had slipped on may have been a female one. If she was disguised as that psychotic woman, it didn't seem surprising someone would ask her permission before using her services. Fem-Spy strode over to him, trying to carefully draw out her gun to finish him off. Damn BLU's were stubborn. When she was at arm's length of the Engineer, he reacted with startling speed. He swung his shotgun like a club, aiming the barrel at Fem-Spy's head. She realized a second to late and caught the side of the gun to the temple, ripping her disguise mask off her face. She reeled backward, trying to stay upright. She caught herself just before the moat's edge. There was a ringing in her head she tried to dispel as she focused on the Engineer. He had his gun raised again, trying to hold it steady.

"Now wait _Ingénieur_," Fem-Spy said desperately, looking for a way out. She found it in the form of a small, red laser dot of the wall of the BLU base, just above the Engineer's head. She shifted her weight to one side in an attempt to give her Sniper a clearer view. "Please, Labourer, I could kill you in an instant. Let me go and I'll do you no harm."

The Engineer gave a shaky laugh and steadied himself a bit more. "I don't know what you think you're gonna do you rat, but I'll put an end to it."

Two things happened at once. The RED Sniper fired and hit the BLU Engineer just above his right eye, spilling his brain on the dirt ground. Just before that however, the Engineer had pulled the trigger on his shotgun, emptying the bullet spay into Fem-Spy's chest. Even though she stood a few feet away from him, the force of the blast knocked Fem-Spy backwards, over the edge of the moat. Through the pain she was vaguely aware she was falling.

'_So much for no getting my suit wet.'_ She thought as she fell.

She realized the full force of her injury when she hit the water. The icy cold of the canal rushed to envelop her body, filling her mouth and nose as she sunk. The water hitting her ragged flesh torn by the shotgun stung terribly. Fem-Spy frantically clawed for the surface, aiming to the sewer pipe in front of her. She stroked through the water until she reached the lip of the pipe, gasping and sputtering as she came up for air. She pulled herself up nearly collapsing under the agony in her chest, hacking and coughing as she tried to rid her lungs of water.

'_I can't stop here.'_ Fem-Spy thought. She was exposed and in her current state she was an easy target. She pushed herself up into a standing position, her hand pressed against her chest in an attempt to stem the bleeding. She was lucky, the spray from the shotgun was wide but it hadn't penetrated too far into her body. Her breasts had likely stopped most of the damage to her heart and lungs, but she would need a Medic soon. Her knees sloshed through the water as she stumbled along the pipe, using the side wall for support. She turned down one curve in the tunnel and then another.

After the second bend, Fem-Spy looked up to see a small set of stairs and a dry platform. She nearly cried out with relief. She used the last of her strength to dash up the stairs and turn to the right, behind a guard rail where she knew a med kit would be waiting. Fem-Spy fell to her knees when she saw the box with the small cross of it. She propped herself up against the wall and opened up the med kit. It was disappointingly empty, aside from a small bottle of pain killers. Fem-Spy opened the bottle and tossed the few remaining pills into her mouth. As she swallowed, she closed her eyes and rested her head against the cold concrete wall. Now that the little adrenaline in her body had worn off, she was painfully aware of the multiple holes in her chest. The bleeding had almost stopped, but the ache from her wound was still there in full force. Fem-Spy tried not to move and just listen around her. The sounds of machinery in the sewer room were almost comforting. Someone had to be done there sooner or later, as the Sniper had seen her fall into the moat. She slowly opened her eyes, when she saw something that made her freeze in place. Her breathing caught as she looked at the wall opposite her, decorated with logos and paint of the team's color. The blue paint.

She was in the wrong base.

* * *

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make good things happen!_


	24. End of the Road

_Sorry about the long update time everyone. I guess part of me didn't want to update because I didn't want this story to end myself. Anywho, here's the chapter. Please enjoy._

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page. _

* * *

Fem-Spy felt the panic rising in her body as her eyes traced the sewer wall. The BLU team's logo stared back at her with an almost mocking nature. How had she gotten into the wrong base? The fall into the moat must have distorted her sense of direction. She tried to stand up but the agony of the bullets in her chest and stomach kept her down. She grit her teeth in pain and sat, her fear intensifying. She tried to backtrack and figure out where she made her mistake. She must have gotten disoriented when she fell into the water, and swam the wrong way. Her own stupidity astounded her. There was nothing to be done about it now, however. She would have to wait until the pain died down or another group of REDs found her. Fem-Spy tried not to think of any other out comes to the situation.

With another gargantuan effort, Fem-Spy pushed herself off the ground and scratched at the wall behind her for purchase. She eventually found stability and stood shakily, checking the pipe leading to BLU's base. It was quiet, save for the dripping of water somewhere else in the tunnel. She took a slow step away from the wall and nearly collapsed. Thankfully the railing that separated her from the pipe water on her left jutted out in front of her. She grabbed it and steadied herself again. It was becoming increasing harder to breath.

Fem-Spy didn't know if the battle was still being fought on the bridge. If it was, she could probably sneak through the BLU base and escape. Gingerly, she walked with the support of the railing to the stairs leading to the water. As she moved closer, she listened for signs of movement in the BLU staircase and beyond. There was faint yelling, but no gunshots or other hostile noises. Standing up straighter, Fem-Spy released the metal railing and balanced herself, making sure she could stand. The pain in her chest and stomach had faded a bit or perhaps simply numbed. Either way she felt better and surprised she hadn't passed out yet.

'_Knock wood_,' she thought bitterly.

She reached into her jacket and fiddled with her cigarette case, pulling out both a slender white tube and a Spy disguise. She lit the cigarette and then slipped on the disguise, now slowly sloshing through the water to the BLU staircase. With any luck she could pass for a BLU Spy with some bad battle wounds. She eventually made it to the stairs, the cigarette and pills combining in her body giving her a comfortable numb state.

She straightened up and tried to move up the stairs in a hurried manner, hoping to give the impression she was freshly wounded.

"I require assistance!" She yelled up the stairs. There was a muffled yell from somewhere above her. She stopped and waited, listening for the other voice. It turned out to be a Soldier wielding his shovel at the top of the stairs. Fem-Spy took notice that he was slightly blood spattered.

"And just WHAT is this PRIVATE?" He yelled in her face. The force nearly had Fem-Spy reeling backwards.

"I-it was in zee sewers," She stammered out, trying to sound scared. She didn't need to act much. "I was caught off guard. Zhere may be someone still zhere."

The Soldier glared at her for a moment, and then called, "MEDIC!"

Fem-Spy felt relief spread through her body. She could get heal, stab the BLU simpleton when she was done and be on her way. The Soldier stomped up the stairs, leaving Fem-Spy still clutching her stomach. She followed him slowly. When she finally reached the top of the stairs, she found the Soldier standing, discussing something rather loudly with a Medic. Fem-Spy stood awkwardly and waited for the conversation to be over. After a few moments, Soldier stormed off in what seemed to be a huff. The Medic sighed rather overdramatically and turned to Fem-Spy. That was when her blood ran cold. It was the female Medic.

"Vell Spy," she said with a wry smile. "I hope I didn't keep you vaiting."

Fem-Spy grasped for breath. "Not at all."

"Good. Now," the Fem-Medic entwined her arm around Fem-Spy's elbow. "Let's get you a Dispenser."

Fem-Spy felt her skin tingle as the woman touched her, even if it was through a suit. Then she was being lead toward the Intelligence room. There wasn't much action in the twisting halls, besides the occasional BLU running past. None of them said anything to the walking pair. Fem-Spy was amazed at the status the Fem-Medic seemed to have on the BLU team. It was like she was a leader.

They walked to the BLU courtyard, where both a Teleporter and Dispenser were parked under the stairs leading to the Resupply room. There was no Engineer supervising them, though this didn't seem to deter Fem-Medic at all. She swung Fem-Spy around roughly by the shoulders and pushed her down toward the Dispenser. Fem-Spy hit the dirt ground and banged her head on the metal box. She sat up, rubbing the back of her head. Fem-Medic was smiling at her, her lips pulled back to reveal perfectly straight teeth.

"Vell Spy, after you are healed, ve are going on a run to get ze RED Intelligence."

"We are?" Fem-Spy tried to keep her voice steady.

Fem-Medic giggled. "Of course Spy. You vill help me, und ve vill get ze briefcase und ve vill kill zem all."

Fem-Spy swallowed hard. Fem-Medic suddenly halted in her girlish laughing. A cloud seemed to passed over her face. "Especially zat ozzah Spy," she growled. "Ve must kill her."

Fem-Spy felt this would have been a topic brought up in whatever conversation the woman would have with her teammates. Fem-Medic seemed to have an insatiable dislike for Fem-Spy, though she had no idea why. Perhaps it was simply because she was on the RED team? Whatever the reason Fem-Spy knew she had to get out of her predicament before Fem-Medic realized who was sitting in front of her dispenser.

Fem-Spy cleared her throat and began to speak. "_Mademoiselle_, what would you do if you, er, caught 'er?"

Fem-Medic looked genuinely surprised. "Have ve not gone ovah zis? Ve are going to kill her, but slowly." A malicious grin spread over her face. "I'm not sure how at ze moment. I have had some extra time to zink about it. I vas zinking something vith birds."

Through Fem-Medic's musings, Fem-Spy was trying to inch further and further away from the Austrian woman. She felt her wounds healing, almost completely. If she could just get away...

Fem-Medic glanced down at Fem-Spy. "Vell Spy, it appears you are finished healing," she reached down and grabbed Fem-Spy's arm. "Come on now Spy, let's get zis operation under vay."

Fem-Spy stuttered as she was pulled to her feet. "Ah, _Mademoiselle_, perhaps we would like some backup or, ah, support?"

Fem-Medic glared at her. "Are you questioning me, Spy?"

Fem-Spy was silent, staring into the Medic's cold, dark eyes. There was a moment's pause before Fem-Medic's hand snapped out and struck Fem-Spy's face. Fem-Spy felt herself fly backwards with the blow and grabbed at the Dispenser, looking for to help her remain upright. She did so, but with the force of the blow, she felt her disguise flicker. She hoped Fem-Medic wouldn't notice. A single glance up to the woman's face proved Fem-Spy's hopes were dashed.

"_Schweinhund!_" Fem-Medic screamed, her face contorting into a mask of rage. She dove at Fem-Spy who carefully dodged the attack, sending the Medic headlong into the Dispenser. Fem-Spy used this opportunity and ran past her, heading for the sewers again, not caring about her disguise. She knew that now that the German woman was after her, no team of either color was going to stand in her way.

Just as Fem-Spy reached the stairs to go down into the sewers, she encountered a soaking wet BLU Scout coming up them. In a panic, she shoved him to the side and kept on running. The Scout flailed as he fell, swinging his bat toward her head. Fem-Spy tried to duck, but the bat collided with the back of her head as she passed the fallen BLU. She fell down the last few steps, banging her shoulder on the cement floor. She staggered to her feet, pushing herself off the ground with her good arm. She was motivated by the frantic footsteps of Fem-Medic above her.

Fem-Spy ran to the water filled pipe and dashed down it. She tried not to trip, but the water was slowing her down, as was the stabbing pain in her arm and shoulder. She sloshed through the sewer water, painfully aware of the footsteps speeding up behind her. Fem-Spy reached the first platform in the bend of the sewer as the splashes behind her got louder. She turned to check on her opponent, when she was roughly tackled. Fem-Spy yelled as she was brought down hard into the water, her face hitting the edge of the submerged stairs.

She tried to clear her head as she felt the water rush into her throat. She sputtered and flailed at the figure on her back. A well placed fist and a cry of pain dislodged them and Fem-Spy scrambled for air. She coughed and pulled herself up the small set of stairs to the dry platform, aware of a ringing in her head and the pain in her arm. She took a few deep, hacking breaths and then stood as quickly as she could to face her opponent. But there was no one there.

It took Fem-Spy a moment to notice the body floating in the water at her feet. The Fem-Medic was face down, a smear of blood seeping from her head. Fem-Spy sighed deeply. The blow must knocked her out at least. She reached down to check if the woman was still alive. With a sudden movement, Fem-Medic's hand shot out of the water and clamped hard of Fem-Spy's ankle. Startled by this, Fem-Spy kicked violently at the woman still of the floor. Fem-Medic held on to Fem-Spy's leg, causing her to trip as Fem-Spy tried to back away. Fem-Spy hit the concrete stairs of the small platform hard and immediately tried to push her off, but to no avail. Fem-Medic reached up and grabbed as much of Fem-Spy as she could, until she was nearly on top of her. Fem-Spy grabbed Fem-Medic's shoulders and tried to heave the woman off her. In a brief moment she saw rage in Fem-Medic's face and nearly gasped in shock. If there was ever a murderous intent by anyone Fem-Spy saw this was the most fearsome.

She saw Fem-Medic reaching behind her for something and instinctively groped for her gun. She was a second to late as Fem-Medic swung her arm around with a tight grip on her bonesaw. The woman brought the saw brought down across Fem-Spy's collarbone. Fem-Spy gave out a shriek of pain, desperately trying to throw off the other woman. However, Fem-Medic didn't let go and swung her bonesaw again toward Fem-Spy's shoulder. She quickly blocked the swing and gragged Fem-Medic's wrist, holding her saw hovering above her own skin. Fem-Spy held Fem-Medic in this position for a moment, both women quivering with effort to kill the other while not being killed at the same time.

Fem-Medic gave a frustrated smirk as she was poised with her saw. "Now, now _fräulein_," she growled. "Just let me kill you and zis can all be done vith."

"Why are you so set on killing zee women of zee teams?" Fem-Spy sputtered, trying to adjust her grip and letting Fem-Medic's arm lower a few more inches.

"Because I am going to prove I am ze best," Fem-Medic's smirk grew wider. "You are such a shtupid girl, you have no idea how hard I worked to get here. Und you vill _not_ stop me."

"But, zee companies will not allow any women on the field if we are killed here," Fem-Spy struggled to say, the weight of Fem-Medic nearly crushing her now.

Fem-Medic laughed a cold laugh. "Oh please little _fräulein_, if you vanted me to not kill you, you could have at least come up vith a bettah excuse," She steadied her grip on her bonesaw. "I should zank you zough. You have killed everyone else on my team, now all zat's left is you."

In a fast, rough motion Fem-Medic ripped her hand holding the bonesaw out of Fem-Spy's grip and brought it down horizontally across Fem-Spy's chest. Fem-Spy screamed as the metal cut into the flesh above her collar bone. Blood spilled across Fem-Medic's face as her smile grew even more. Fem-Spy failed at the woman on top of her, grabbing and pressing her throat in a vain attempt to slow the bleeding. Fem-Medic calmly stood up, still hanging over Fem-Spy, watching her choke. Also calmly, she raised her glove and wiped a spot of Fem-Spy's blood off her face. She stared at the blood for a moment, and then licked it off with her tongue trailing off the tip of her middle finger.

"So _fräulein_, shall I leave you here to die, as you almost did to me once?" Fem-Medic's voice was venomous. "I can assure you zat no Medic's vill be coming to your rescue, however."

Fem-Spy said nothing, holding her throat and trying not to inhale too much of her own blood. She had been trained to get out of any situation, not matter how desperate but now she was drawing a blank. She was dying now. No one would be able to help her.

There was a splashing sound in one of the pipes and a rush of water. Fem-Medic turned to face the noise, some blood still slipping down her chin. Fem-Spy leaned forward carefully, so as not to shift her wound too much. With faint hope, she looked and prayed that it was a stray RED Demoman or Soldier, someone who could help her. It was a BLU Spy who had apparently run down the pipe and just stop short of her bloody body. She felt like crying.

"I heard yells," The BLU Spy panted and adjusted his tie. "But I see you have taken care of it already."

Fem-Medic snorted. "Please Spy, don't make me laugh. I can take care of one little RED."

Spy straightened himself up and glanced toward Fem-Spy. "Are you just going to leave her there?"

"Vhy should I do anyzing? She vill die vatever I do und I doubt she vould give me ze same courtesy." Fem-Medic placed her bonesaw in the holder on her belt.

"Perhaps not, but I don't doubt you deserve any of it." The Spy reached into his jacket and pulled out his gun. He took a few sloshing steps toward Fem-Spy until he stood over her. Fem-Medic watched him with a sneer.

"Do my dirty vork for me zen."

"I will do nothing for you that shouldn't be done." The BLU Spy looked down his nose at Fem-Spy for another moment before turning to Fem-Medic and raising his gun level with her head.

Fem-Medic raised an eyebrow. "Vat are you doing Spy?" She said steadily. "Put zat away before you hurt yourself."

"I wouldn't be worried about myself Medic," The Spy raised his hand and glanced at his watch. Then he reached to his face and pushed at something with the heel of his hand. Fem-Spy watched with amazement as she saw a shimmer of a disguise kit and the BLU Spy's suit turn RED. It was Spy, her Spy, in all his snarky, French glory.

With a slow deliberate movement he raised his gun level to Fem-Medic's head. The woman's eyes widened. "Oh look at zis, anozzah rat has scurried into ze sewers," she sneered.

"More zhen I can say for you _Mademoiselle_," said Spy.

"So you are going to kill me, I am not surprised," Fem-Medic said. "But your little _fräulein's _time is almost up, I vould help her, if you can." The corners of her mouth curled into a devilish grin.

There was a tense moment. Spy's finger quivered on the trigger of his Ambassador, he kept his gaze intently on Fem-Medic. He glanced down toward at Fem-Spy, and in that instance Fem-Medic saw an opportunity. With a scream she leaped toward Spy, clawing at this face. Spy yelled as Fem-Medic threw herself toward him, crashing into him and collapsing to the ground. Fem-Spy followed the pair with her eyes, trying not to move her head or neck. She couldn't see either of the fighting pair except out of the corner of her eye. She strained to see them, feeling the blood from her neck sliding down her throat. There was a bang from the ground and silence. The area was quiet for a moment. The only sounds were her ragged breathing and the gentle lapping of the water in the tunnel. Fem-Spy felt her breath catch and tried to speak. She managed a shaky, "_Spy?_"

There was another moment of silence before a RED clad figure rise from the floor. Fem-Spy felt herself relax, sighing slowly. As she did, a few drops of blood fell out and over her lips and she immediately restricted herself to smaller breaths. Her vision began to get hazy.

She saw Spy turn and stride toward her quickly, bending down to her. The front of his suit was splattered with blood. He looked into Fem-Spy's face with an expression she had never seen him wear before. He raised his gloved hand and brushed a drop of blood from her chin.

"It's not as bad as it looks," Spy said with false confidence. "I don't believe she 'it an artery." He gently pushed Fem-Spy's hand away from her neck to examine the damage. Fem-Spy coughed, blood spurting out over her chest and a few drops landing on Spy's gloves. He jumped slightly, catching the blood in his hand as it fell, as if he could put it back in her body.

Fem-Spy forced a weak smile. "Did you kill 'er?" she spoke slowly.

Spy cut her off. "No, don't. You'll open zee wounds further. I will find you 'elp." He didn't take his eyes off her. Fem-Spy tried to give him a stern look. "Yes," Spy said with slight smugness. "She's dead, you 'ave nothing to worry about."

Fem-Spy closed her eyes and sighed again. All she did was focus on Spy and where he was touching her. His gloves caressed her chin and moved up to her cheek. She opened her eyes to find Spy's face inches away from her own. His expression made her want to cry.

"I'll be fine," she whispered hoarsely. Spy held himself for one more moment before closing the gap between them. The kiss was soft and slow. Fem-Spy felt at peace, as though she was back in Spy's room. The feeling was broken as she felt a catch in her throat and began to cough again, closing her eyes tight. Blood dribbled over her lips and there was a searing upon her neck now, a nearly blinding pain. She opened her eyes to look at Spy again, trying to exude some reassurance.

"You need to go now Spy," Fem-Spy spoke in a tone as if she were to a small child. "Zey will find you 'ere if you stay." Spy was frozen, holding her face, until she raised her hand and gently pushed him hand away. "Go," she whispered.

Spy moved slowly, moving her hands to cover her neck. Then he stood, looking down on her with the same unreadable expression as before.

"_Au revoir ma cheri_," he whispered to her. Then with one swift movement, Spy turned and activated this cloak, disappearing down the tunnel in a plume of red smoke. For a few seconds Fem-Spy could hear his feet splashing down the tunnel. After a moment she was left with nothing but the pressing silence. She glanced about herself, wondering what would happen now. She was beyond help and she knew it and really that she could hope for was that Spy made it out alive. She was certain he would, though. He was a professional after all.

Fem-Spy took a large breath and felt the blood trickle down her throat. Her brain was getting fuzzy and her vision darkening at the edges. This was it, she realized, she was dying.

It was an epiphany of sorts but it didn't come with a light bulb type feeling or an explosion. It came subtly and quietly, as if it were only a passing thought. Fem-Spy bit her lip, as she was at a loss for what else to do.

'_I guess I should contemplate my life. Something meaningful,_' she thought. What good would it do her? Nothing she decided now would change anything, but it certainly wouldn't hurt. She thought about her family. How would they get by without her salary? Would RED even tell them what happened or would it be covered up by lies?

She thought about her few months at the base, all the people she had met. She thought about Fem-Demo and Engie, Fem-Scout and Franz. Even Medic crossed her mind. They had shared something over the months, not matter that they were surrounded by death every day. Fem-Spy couldn't believe she was leaving them behind.

Then she thought about Spy. Her wonderful, sensual, infuriating Spy. He was still such a mystery and she couldn't believe she was leaving him so soon. She didn't think what they had could continue, in the base or in the real world, but the time they had spent together in her short life was precious to her. Whatever happened to him, she hoped he would remember her.

Fem-Spy began to cry, letting out deep heaving breaths. As her eyelashes became wet with tears, she closed her lids. She slowed her breathing, trying to control herself. As she did, she felt her thoughts swimming. She blinked open her eyes, the florescent lights of the tunnel painfully bright. Fem-Spy let out her breath slowly, feeling her vision blur from something other than tears. Her head felt heavy and darkness was creeping in from the corners of her vision. She smiled to herself as her the feeling set in. She felt her consciousness slipping away and settled in it, comfortable. This was the end of her journey and she didn't mind one bit.

* * *

_Epilogue coming._

_Please rate & review, any critique and comments make my day a bit happier!_


	25. Epilogue

_Disclaimer: 'Team Fortress 2' and all its characters and concepts belong to the Valve Corporation. I own the writing on this page, the original characters, features and situations upon said page._

* * *

Spy leaned back in his chair. He was in his room, on the desk in front of him was form letter that he had received the previous morning:

_Dear Sir,_

_We thank you as a R.E.D. employee for your interest in the corporate side of your company. However, we would like to reiterate your request for the retrieval for the body of __SPY #122__ has been denied. Your inquiry into the __'Female Test Class'__ experiment is appreciated, but unnecessary. As you are already aware, five (5) of the six (6) females placed on the field have perished, thus deeming the experiment a failure. The last female has been sent home as of last week with her pay check and a recommendation letter. We are also aware you have contacted us about the matters of your fellow teammates and you have been requested to cease and desist. We recommend you comply, as we can do much worse than simply fire you. You are a good Spy but please stop sticking your nose in other people's business. _

_Regards, _

_Ms. Pauling, Assistant to the Administrator_

He sneered as he read it over for the fiftieth time. The nerve of these women, being so bossy and secretive. They quite reminded him of a certain Spy he used to know. His lips pulled into a small grin as he lit a cigarette. She was gone however, a casualty he would not simply brush off. She was a test, it wasn't fair that her life was taken and the test failed. She had put so much into her time here and the thought that all her effort would go to waste made Spy sick. He brushed the form letter off his desk onto the floor and picked up a red colored file sitting underneath it. He was going to find her family and make it up to them. He was going to deliver the news of her death and tell them how brave, how clever and brilliant she was. He would tell them she died as a warrior in the face of battle, how she confronted her enemies and how much she meant to him. It was the least he could do.

* * *

_Well, here it is. The end of the road for this story. I want to thank all my readers who've stuck by me, through my sporadic updates and my editing mistakes. I've read all the reviews and taken each and every one to heart and I think I've become a better writer for it. I would thank everyone here by name but that would take way to long and I know you'd only be looking for yours, so instead I say thank you to all of you (you know who you are)._

_I may be writing more (and more consistently) in the future, so pop by if you so feel inclined. Thank you again!_

_-Everoneisright_


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